Total Drama Zenith
by Zevoros
Summary: After years off the air, Total Drama has finally returned, but now with Clifford Lane at the helm. With a new island and cast, anything is bound to happen. But when the competition takes a turn on survival and not just a cash prize, the game is turned up a notch. With a rebellion on the rise, a murder in New York, and one big ransom, it is all a big conspiracy on Paspinêw Island...
1. Welcome to Paspinêw Island!

**AN: Well, here it is! Let me know if I portrayed your character wrong, and I'll try and fix it! Also, besides your own character, leave in the review which character is your favorite! Y'know, just gotta make some people happy that they have a good idea for a character. Anyway, without further adieu, here it is!**

* * *

Welcome to Paspinêw Island!

The sky was dark, and rain poured down onto an island below. The storm was raining down on the left side much more than the other, almost ominously.

The island had been written off of almost all maps for the series of 'curse' activity going on around it. On the right of the island was a large graveyard, almost suiting that fog took up the area.

Further to the right was another smaller island, holding a tall unused lighthouse, with a small bridge with a walkway connecting to a door, which, on the inside, would lead up to the top of the tower.

A dock sat in the water, almost looking like it didn't want to be disturbed. At the end, was a dock leading to a gravel path, leading to a large wooden cabin, much better than the season one, four, and five cabins, although only one of them.

To the right, the gravel path abruptly stopped almost as the fog on the right hit. On the dock stood a tall lanky pale man with dirty-blond hair.

The man held an umbrella over his head, blocking the rain from hitting his head. He had a small smirk, and mischief glistening in his gray eyes. His hair drooped over his left eye, prompting him to push it out of his way. He was a thin man, his cheekbones only slightly visible.

In some cases, you could consider him a walking skeleton.

He was wearing a large trench coat over a black button-up shirt and a red and white striped tie. He was wearing dark blood red suit pants, and nice black dress shoes.

"My name, is Clifford Lane, and I'm here to drop the next season of the hottest reality TV shows on the planet since McLean's departure three years ago!

"I plan to surpass the never to be spoken of Ridonculous Race. This season, we have been granted the permission from the government themselves after years of persuasion to do what this show should have done all those years ago.

"The pain, the misery...the death...

"All too perfect to ignore. Each contestant is on their way to Paspinêw Island, and ready to compete. Not for money, oh no. But the most important factor of all:

"Their own life.

"So, stick around for the first episode of our greatest elimination game on the planet, this is Total Drama Zenith!"

* * *

 **Theme Song**

* * *

The rain continued to pour down, even miles out from the mystery island, where a large cargo plane was flying in. A Boeing C-17 Globemaster III, to be precise.

In the pilot seat was an ex-soldier, his gloved hands carefully flying the plane in the correct direction. He was the only one of the 26 total passengers to be armed with a pistol hooked in his belt.

He wore a white tan-ish military uniform, with long black boots. His black hair was graying at the sides, but he didn't care for it. He wasn't to be described as an attractive man by any means.

He appeared to be his his mid-fifties, judging from his skin and sharp cheekbones.

To his right, his temporary co-pilot, was an eighteen year old teen. He wore a plain red t-shirt, his unzipped black hoodie covering a portion of it. He didn't look too professional with the pilot there, considering his ripped blue jeans, and rundown black shoes.

He was thin, but he had no visible traces of muscles through his clothing. In fact, the only thing he seemed to really care for was his blond hair that he combed prior to working along.

Behind the metallic door behind them, the twelve contestants sat on long benches, facing each other...their competition.

On the left of the plane was a girl with dark, brown hair, reaching down to her waist. He was almost obvious she had been wearing makeup. Her brown almond eyes scanning the cellphone in her hand, which, unfortunately, went out from the no amount of reception in the area. She sighed in annoyance, pocketing it into her white jeans.

 **Elsie - The Internet Beauty Guru**

She turned to her left to see a chubby boy with an afro. She practically vomited, noticing all of the pimples on his face. And his clothes definitely weren't helping either. His dark red hoodie, and gray sweatpants.

She swallowed, tapping him on the shoulder, earning his attention. The boy looked at her, and a wide grin spread across his face.

 **Eduardo - The Wannabe Charmer**

"Have you seen my videos on WatchTube? They'll definitely give you tips on washing your face and getting rid of those pimples." Elsie told him.

The entire remark caught Eduardo off guard, but quickly kept his smile, that only quickly grew into one of complete awkwardness.

"No, should I have?" Eduardo asked, scooting slightly closer.

Elsie shrugged in response as Eduardo unsuspectedly wrapped his arms around her shoulder.

"Why don't me and you talk about it?"

Elsie shifted uncomfortably in her seat, glancing around the plane.

On the opposite side of the plane, a girl was standing on the bench in pink high-heels, already seeming as a bad idea. She wore blue jeans above her heels, and a green sweater if her chest. Her brown hair flowing down her back.

 **Krystal - The Crazy Chick**

The boy next to her stared up at her, his eyebrow cocked. He wore a white button-up shirt, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and light khaki pants, and finally, light gray boat shoes.

 **Jack - The Polymath**

"The benches are used for sitting." He told her calmly, yet somewhat sarcastically.

"Everybody betrayed me! I'm fed up with this world!" She screamed, earning looks from several of the other contestants.

Before Jack could respond, Krystal fell off the bench, and to the floor, and posed as if she were dead.

Across the plane on the other side sat two people, one of them being a well dressed man with a tall hat, with two, almost lifeless eyes.

The girl next to him had an athletic build to her with an hourglass frame. Her white hair had been styled into a wild mane-like mess, and two bangs at the sides of her face, covering her ears. A golden crescent moon shaped brooch sat in the left side of her head.

 **Irina and Nebiros - The Creepy Puppeteer**

Across from her, another teen spun a pencil along his finger tips, blueprints in his lap. His blond hair had been styled into horns.

 **Dylan - The Architect**

Dylan looked over at the boy next to him, who wore a blue shirt and tan jeans. But what stuck out the most about him was his brown combat boots.

 **Jace - The Hidden Villain**

"And I though the pirate was weird." Dylan rolled his eyes, and prompted a snicker from Jace.

The pirate, to who Dylan had referring to, was a fellow contestant dressed in an all red pirate uniform.

 **Ted - The Pirate**

Ted was chatting with a thin African American girl. Her black hair was cut short and curled up on the left side of her head, with the right been shaved off entirely, with the ends of the tips dyed yellow. Freckles ran across her nose and a scar over her right eye. Two earrings were in her right ear.

 **Jewel - The Spectrum Meme**

"Aye, so what do ye say to joining Captain Ted's crew?" Ted asked her, talking in a pirate accent.

"Pirates are really cool…" Jewel thought out loud. "I'll think about it."

"Then think you shall, and I hope to ye I get an answer from my future first mate!"

On another bench sat two boys, one of them thin with shaggy blond hair, going to his neck in a cowlick. He wore a blue, gray, and black striped shirt with a hoodie, along with blue jeans, black sneakers, and glasses.

 **Kevin - The Autistic Sweetheart**

He glances at the boy next to him, and looks away, seemingly shy to start up a conversation with him. He caught his outfit easily enough.

A mustard yellow, cropped, long sleeved shirt, black high waisted denim shorts, and checkered slip-ons.

He could easily tell that he wasn't heterosexual.

The boy had mediumly tanned skin, and his curly dark brown hair stopped just above his eyebrows.

 **Mickey - The Teenage Child**

Unbeknownst to Kevin, Mickey too looked slightly at him. The only thing he could wish for was that he could make a friend that would understand him. And not only that, but actually try to talk to someone.

But this plane ride already set reality in enough for him.

Across from Mickey sat another boy, this one wearing a short brown haircut. He wore black shoes, and a pair of tan slacks, and finally, a light blue t-shirt and a green sweater vest.

 **Timothy - The Ultra Positive Guy**

The seventeen year old looked excited for the show, despite not having a clue about what lay ahead.

"This is gonna be great!"

"For you, I'm not supposed to be here."

 **Emily - The Unpredictable Loner**

Emily had a tanned light brown skin color, and one of the only ones on the plane. Her black wavy hair cut down to her shoulders, except for one particular strand that covered her right eye.

She could definitely be seen as attractive with her look, but her clothing was the element that may throw some of that away. She wore a black dress, her dark blue leggings torn at the knees, and glasses positioned over her eyes.

"Why's that?" Timothy asked, eyebrow raised.

Emily crossed her arms. "My sister tricked me. That's all you need to know."

Timothy nodded, a grin formed on his face. "I totally see that!"

"Well, do you know how long I've waited to be on this show?"

 **Lizzy - The Drama Queen**

Lizzy had overheard the conversation and decided to add a bit of her own into it. The girl had long blonde hair with a red head band. She had blue eyes, and her ears were pierced. Lizzy was wearing a pink t-shirt, and a purple bracelet over her left arm, and tan pants, along with white shoes.

"I've been wanting to be on this show for the longest time!" She exclaims, bending her elbows to form her arms in a 'V' formation.

Timothy rose his hand, and she accepted the opening, high-fiving him.

Across the plane sat a rather tall girl with blue eyes, and wavy Ruby red hair. She was wearing a blue sundress with white heels and a blue sun hat, and generally just seeming relaxed.

 **Marisa - The Genki Blogger**

Next to her was another male teen, this one having messy platinum blond hair, almost white. His left eye is a color green, and his right a stormy gray. He was wearing a leather jacket with a green t-shirt and faded blue jeans.

 **Travis - The Bipolar Flirt**

Travis looked over at Marisa curiously. "Your hair looks like fire," earning Marisa's attention, "because it's hot."

Marisa giggled a bit, and Travis offered a charming smile.

Across from them, two people say by themselves. A male African American with short dark hair, and has a goatee and mustache. Two scars could be seen on his neck, and has the average body size, but a slightly chubby stomach.

 **Jerome - The Noble Demon**

The girl, however, has a long flow of brown brushed hair, just long enough to reach her shoulders. She wears a white button-up dress shirt and a black skirt, dark green lines running down the sides. A red and black checkered flannel had been tied around her waist.

 **Jade - The Savant**

Jade was reading from a book, Jerome casting glances ever-so-often. His lips would turn up at the sound of her speaking slightly. "Interesting."

Completely unexpectedly, she looked at him. "Have you read this?"

Jerome formed a scowled expression, his eyes narrowing at her. "Don't talk to me."

Jade sighed, looking back at her book. "As you wish." She muttered.

Without warning, the metallic door was thrown open, and the two men stepped out.

 **Graves - The Merciless Gravedigger**

 **Brendan - The Intelligent Introvert**

Outside the plane, a storm was raging on. Lightning struck, striking the wing of the plane, prompting Lizzy to let out a scream.

"Oi! Listen up!" Graves shouted as Brendan pulled a net through the door, holding enough parachutes for the contestants.

"We're heading over land just as I speak! You grab a parachute, strap on, and jump! Any questions?"

Mickey rose his hand, but Graves ignored him entirely. "Good!"

Gripping a lever on the side door, Graves turned it open. Before anyone could realize what just occurred, the wind tore the bolts from the door, tearing off the door entirely, sending it to the ground below.

Brendan walked down the left benches, handing in parachutes to the contestants, some of them fearing for their lives much more than others.

Finally, he reached a slender boy, his shaggy hair was either styled the way it was from the lightning, or just because it already was. Freckles appeared to be on his cheek.

He was wearing a gray wool hoodie and baggy blue jeans.

 **Hunter - The Kleptomaniac**

Brendan handed out the parachute, to which Hunter gripped his hand, pulling him closer to him. "This is safe right?" He asked fearfully.

Brendan made a type of face, and promptly pried his arm away from Hunter, walking to the next person and handing in the parachute.

As soon as Brendan was out of eye view, Hunter smirked, pulling out a watch.

The girl next to him watched him, her eyebrow raised, though slightly amused. She wore a blue shirt and a white coat, black pants and brown shoes. A heart shaped necklace was wrapped around her neck, her dyed pink hair sweeping down over her neck, as if trying to protect it.

 **Roxie - The Pharmacist**

Hunter glanced at the necklace, then up to Roxie's face. "That's a nice necklace." He spoke.

Roxie smiled a bit in return. "My dad gave it to me."

Hunter frowned a bit at hearing that, looking down at the watch in his hand, deep in thought.

The rain was pouring into the plane now due to the missing door. Graves has been calculating the jump time ever since the door was flung into the dark sky.

There were a few contestants sitting on the bench close to the door that were not pleased by the rain. Only one of them a male, and lightly tan one at that. His messy black hair made him stand out along with his blue eyes. He had broad shoulders, a definite muscular build with freckles running along his face. He was wearing a red plaid shirt and black trousers, not the best attire for the location they had been headed.

 **Alexei - The Optimistic Hiker**

"I hope it won't always be like this!" He shouted over the wind entering the plane, allowing his voice to be heard.

"I heard there is a theory where an American president can control the weather!" A female voice shouted as well.

She was a girl, a rather short one at that. She had black hair tied back into a bun, a purple highlight streaming from a small section. Her bright green eyes seemed to rival Alexei's blue ones. Pale freckles ran across her nose area, and purple earrings in her ears, a camera slung around her shoulder was blowing in the wind.

She was wearing gray jeans and white sneakers, a black shirt and a picture of the green clichè alien image on it, a red hoodie over her arms.

 **Chloe - The Conspiracy Theorist**

"That's an actual theory?" Alexei asked over the sound of the wind, completely shocked. Chloe nodded.

"I know! Isn't it ridiculous?"

Brendan walked past them, dropping two parachutes at their feet, to which they quickly reached for and grabbed hold of.

Next to Chloe was another female, a confident smirk plastered across her face. She was a muscular woman with blonde frizzy hair, presumably from the wind. She was wearing a collared beige shirt, and forest green capris tennis shoes.

 **Daisy - The Girl Scout**

As she strapped the parachute to herself, she was thinking aloud. "It's a good thing I earned my parachute badge last month!"

"You went skydiving?" Timothy assumed, "That's so cool!"

"Please don't eavesdrop on other people!" Daisy snapped in response, but Timothy's smile didn't falter.

"We're heading over the island!" Graves shouted, bringing the contestants' attention back to him.

"Note of advice!" He continued, "Don't land on the western side of the island!"

The first contestant to stand with her parachute strapped to her back looked as if she might freeze as soon as she touched the island below. She was wearing a red t-shirt that exposed a section of her stomach, showing quite fit abs. She wore black tight sport pants, reaching her ankles, and red and white sport shoes. A red fingerless gloves was on her left hand, and a black bicep band on her left arm. Her brown haired ponytail reached her shoulder blades, and was quite a slender girl.

 **Erica - The Freerunner**

"Let's do this!" She shouted.

Within seconds, Erica ran from her spot on the bench, and jumped out of the plane to the island below, yelling with adrenaline as she flew down.

Graves turned to look at the remaining, shocked contestants. "Get a move on!"

Jace ran to the door, and jumped out with a scream, practically unable to see from all the rain.

"A dead man tells no tales!" Ted shouted, confirming that he was going to jump.

Marisa stood up and ran past Ted. "Let's go!" She shouted.

She reached the door quickly, and jumped out of the plane with a yell of excitement.

Graves smirked slightly, before a cold stare washed over the remaining contestants still on the plane.

Just that stare made nearly all of the contestants make a run for the exit, leaving only Mickey that has yet to jump.

Brendan cast Mickey a disapproving stare, strapping on his own parachute, and jumping out after the others, leaving Graves and Mickey behind.

"Well, kid! You either die here, or you live to tell the tale! I know which one I'd rather pick!" Graves shouted over the wind, aware that the plane was now nearing the ground, he jumped out.

Tears formed in his eyes, and he raced to the edge of the door as quickly as he could, which wasn't saying too much due to his height being only a few feet taller than Chloe.

He saw the island down below, only barely, and he made his decision.

Mickey jumped out of the plane as it continued to soar on past the island, sailing overhead.

The rain was coming down hard, effectively changing course of Jack's steering on his parachute, annoying him greatly.

Irina was nowhere to be seen, and neither was the human sized puppet, Nebiros.

Down on the dock below, Clifford Lane couldn't help but smile at the sight of all of the 24 contestants sailing down onto the land below. Oh, it was going to be fun!

He shifted his umbrella slightly, allowing to see all of the contestants soar down from the sky that never seemed to stop raining.

Clifford watched one contestant specifically. She had torn herself away from the group, doing a slow, but giant circle around the area to come down from behind the new host.

Erica expertly turned her parachute, and faxed herself in a downward position, allowing the wind to push her down towards the soil below.

Adrenaline rushed through her body, allowing her feet to make contact with the ground first, she unhooked her parachute, doing a roll over her front, dropping the parachute behind her, and quickly stood to her feet, and sprinted down the dock where Clifford had watched.

"I must say that you are definitely impressive in person." Clifford complimented, noticing that Erica's wide grin was as wide as it was in her audition video.

He turned his head to look up at the sky, the contestants coming closer to the land. Brendan and Graves were flying in expertly. Graves was the first to touch the edge of the dock, dropping his parachute to the wooden boards, he marched to Clifford.

Brendan landed on the dock next to Erica, keeping his eyes on the contestants in the sky.

Krystal flew in with an excited scream, but much shorter to the dock, she slammed into the edge of the dock before she could relocate herself, and quickly found herself plummeting into the water.

Graves, acting quickly, bent down to his knees and drove his hand into the water, pulling the girl up by her collar.

The contestants floated to the dock, one by one. Except for Mickey, who, due to his late jump, he failed to stop himself, and slammed into the dirt.

Brendan rolled his eyes and walked over, pulling the boy to his feet, and pushing him onto the dock, where the contestants had gathered.

Clifford scanned over the contestants he brought in, silently determining which contestant would last longer than the other.

Finally he spoke to all of them. "Welcome to Paspinêw Island, your home for the next eight weeks."

A few of the contestants looked unsure with the island, but only one of them spoke up.

"In a graveyard?" Emily asked in disbelief.

Clifford shrugged, still holding his umbrella. "This island was chosen for several reasons. And one of them being the interesting history about this place."

"What's that?" Jace asked, speaking up.

A small smile stretched across Clifford's face. "I'm afraid you'll have to see for yourself." He reached into his pocket and produced a piece of paper.

"This season, three teams will be competing for the ultimate prize. These teams were randomly selected by me." Clifford told them, looking at the list.

"Team one will consist of Mickey, Jewel, Roxie, Ted, Daisy, Travis, Hunter, and Emily." The said contestants grouped together away from the others. "From now forth, your team shall be known as the Phantom Phoenixes."

Ted rolled his eyes. "Such a stupid name for a pirate and his crew, host man! Ye shall change the name to 'Captain Ted's Pirate Crew'!"

Clifford stared unamused at the pirate before continuing. "Team two consists of Lizzy, Alexei, Elsie, Chloe, Kevin, Dylan, Eduardo, and Marisa. You shall be known as the Venomous Vipers.

"A beautiful name for a beautiful team." Eduardo grinned, casting a wink at Chloe, who rose an eyebrow.

"And the final team consists of Erica, Jerome, Krystal, Jace, Timothy, Jade, Irina, and Jack. You shall be known as the Carnivorous Claws."

"Claws?" Irina asked in confusion, speaking for the first time since she boarded the plane.

"Would you rather it be a crane bird?" Clifford asked, folding the list away in his pocket.

"But Carnivorous Cranes would be so cool!" Krystal complained, earning annoyed looks from Jerome, Jace, Jack, Jade, Erica, and Irina.

"Your resting quarters for this season is in there!" Clifford told them, pointing at the two-story cabin at the end of the gravel path at the end of the dock. Timothy, Mickey, Kevin, Jade, and Daisy started for the cabin until Clifford interrupted them.

"Get settled in because in one hour, marks the beginning of your first challenge. I hope you brought your swimsuits."

A few of the contestants looked alarmed at this, but Jade voiced their opinions.

"In this weather!?" She asked in disbelief, looking up at the dark sky as it continued to pour down rain.

"Correct." Clifford replied simply, a sly smile coming across his features. "But if you don't have anything, Brendan stocked the drawers."

The contestants began their trek to the cabin, and a dark smile stretched across Clifford's lips as he walked towards the edge of the dock.

"Well, there is our 24 contestants. Quite a list of individuals, and a group of strange teens on strange teams. Who do you think is going to be the first one to die? We'll both just have to wait and find out when we return on Total! Drama! Zenith!"

As the show faded out, somewhere down south, another event had occurred.

* * *

A man with a bushy mustache slammed his coffee down on a table, spilling the liquid over the counter. He was shocked at what lay in front of him. He was a police detective, but why did they bring a member of the deceased to him specifically.

The younger man with a bowl haircut grabbed the zipper on the body bag, and began to drag it down with his gloved hand, slowly revealing the deceased man in the bag.

His eyes gleamed with a lifeless, terrified glow. Judging from his messy black hair, it seemed that he was just in a fight. And unless he had been growing a beard before he died, he needed a shave, and badly at that.

"We ran an analysis." The forensic spoke, looking over a tablet in his hand, reading a profile of the victim. "He was born in Canada, it seems, visiting New York. CCTV cameras captured him leaving his flight. Apparently he had some sort of meeting."

The man nodded, signifying him to continue.

"You may have heard of him. His name is Chris McLean, a reality TV host."

That caught him off guard. "Why would someone kill a reality TV host?" He asked, rubbing his gray mustache. The forensic simply shrugged.

"Canadians." The mustache man scowled, placing his fists on the counter. "They're sick bastards. They're killing minors on international television. Fucking minors!"

"Do you think this is tied to that?" The forensic asked.

"Of course I do! It's too big of a coincidence!"

"Coincidence?" The forensic asked, looking up at the man. "How is it a coincidence?"

The man sighed, and tilts his head up at the forensic. "I have a gut feeling that these two things are tied somehow."

The forensic rolled his eyes. "You're kidding, right? When it's a murder case, don't expect it to be bigger than what it actually is!"

The detective stood up straight, nodding his head slightly. "You make a good argument."

He glanced down at the tablet the forensic held in his arms, and then quickly back up to his brown eyes. "How did he did?"

"Knife stabbings. Seven knife stabbings. We think it may have been a mugging gone wrong, but there isn't any CCTV to backup that theory.

The detective looked over McLean's deceased body.

"Where are the stab marks?"

The forensic gulped, reaching for the zipper, and pulled it down as far as he could. No markings of any kind were on the body. That was when the forensic flipped him onto his back, seven giant cuts where a knife most definitely had been.

He wondered what it must've felt like, feeling the shark pierce of metal enter his body, tearing through layers of skin, and ripping back out. And then the process continued six more times?

Put it simply, people are sick.

"Where did they find him?" The detective asked, taking his eyes off the body's wounds.

"An alley in New York. A dumpster, actually. He definitely hadn't died right away, he was still warm when he was found. Apparently the civilian called an ambulance, but by the time it arrived he was already dead."

The detective went over the details in his head. "This is not a mugging. This was murder."

The forensic nodded in agreement.

"You said he was heading to a meeting, correct?" The detective reminded, looking back over at the forensic.

"Yeah, that's correct."

"Is there any information about the meeting?"

Again, the forensic shook his head, and the detective looked back at the body of Chris McLean. "Let's get to work, then."

* * *

The three teams stood at the edge of a small cliff, everyone was wearing their swimming suits except for Ted, who was wearing his normal pirate outfit. The rain was coming down, not as hard as it was earlier.

Clifford walked past the three teams, one handed folded behind his back, and his second holding up his umbrella, blocking the rain from hitting him.

"Your first challenge is simple!" He started, reaching the edge of the cliff, and turning around to face the teams. "Six glass puzzle pieces lie underwater. Simply retrieve them and put them in the correct order to create your team's logo.

"It's as easy as that."

"Piece of cake." Dylan scoffed.

"Doesn't it sound that way?" Clifford remarked, smirking slightly. "All in all, I think it depends how well you can see underwater. You know, when you can ignore the coming waves."

Dylan opened his mouth again, but it was covered by Lizzy's hand. "How about you just stop talking, okay hun?" She asked in an annoyed tone.

"Your challenge begins now." Clifford concluded, stepping out of the way of the cliff.

Almost without thinking, Erica ran for the cliff, and dived off as the first diver for the Carnivorous Claws.

"You got this, Erica!" Timothy cheered atop the cliff, next to Jade, Krystal, and Jerome.

The Phantom Phoenixes stood atop the cliff, and Daisy was the one who had been looking down into the water.

"Okay, I've been with the girl scouts for ten years, therefore I believe that I should be in charge here." She announced to her team.

Ted seemed to disagree, walking up. "I disagree, fellow crew mate! But for now, I suggest I, Captain Ted to lead our team to the treasure. And to do that, we sacrifice our most expendable crew member!"

Before Daisy could retaliate, Ted grabbed Mickey by the arm, and brought him to the cliff. "Ye'd better get our treasure, argh!" He yelled at him, and pushing him off the cliff into the water below.

The Venomous Vipers had Eduardo attempting to lead the team. "Being the most talented person on our team, I nominate myself as your gracious team leader." He offered, flashing a horribly fake smile.

Chloe and Elsie shared unsure glances as Dylan rolled his eyes. "Yeah right, you don't have any skills to lead a team!" Dylan argued, crossing his arms.

Keeping his temper in check, Eduardo bowed to Dylan. "If you'd like, I'm all ears for a magnificent team leader."

* * *

Confessional: Dylan

"If it isn't obvious enough, I can see right through his charade. Modeling a strategy after someone isn't a good idea, moron!"

* * *

"We need a diver!" Dylan ordered, scanning the small group of his team.

"I'll do it!" Alexei rose his hand, running for the edge if the cliff, and diving off.

"Good." Dylan smirked, looking back at his team. "Do we have any other volunteers?"

Down in the water below, Erica was swimming, keeping her eyes peeled, and ignoring the waves splashing above her. She noticed a distraught Mickey in the water...wait...why wasn't he moving?

Thinking on pure instinct, Erica spun around in the water, aiming her foot at the ledge of a nearby rock, and shot off. Extending her arms in front of her, she grabbed hold of Mickey's small form, and swam up to the surface, holding him in her arms.

A cheer could be heard as Alexei resurfaced, a green glass puzzle piece in his hand, but he stopped cheering almost as soon as he saw the unconscious Mickey.

Kicking her feet quickly, Erica reached the sandy shore in less than ten seconds, dropping Mickey's body into the sand, and began CPR.

As this occurred, Jewel, Daisy, Travis, Hunter, Emily, and Roxie glared at Ted, who seemed entirely bored with how this event turned out.

Connecting her lips to his, Erica blew air into Mickey's mouth for the third time, all three teams watching from the cliff, each contestant much more terrified than the other.

Finally, almost out of nowhere, Mickey's eyes shot open, and a cough of water exploded from his mouth.

Erica held the boy up, allowing him to recover from what just occurred to him. He silently glanced up at her. "Thank you." He quietly mumbled

Alexei placed a piece of the puzzle onto the sand, watching the sight unfold. "Poor guy." He muttered.

Up above, Krystal crossed her arms, disappointed. "Krystal thinks it would've been better if she left Mickey to die."

"How could you say that!?" Jace shouted.

"Simple: it's because I said it!"

Erica arrived at the top of the cliff as Marisa jumped into the water once Alexei returned.

For the Phantom Phoenixes, Travis jumped into the water.

As for the Claws, Irina's hand seemed to only slightly move as Nebiros dived into the water in her place. She smiled slightly, but it disappeared when Marisa resurfaced.

"Alright!" She cheered, holding the Vipers' second piece.

Travis also resurfaced moments later, followed by Nebiros. Travis was holding a red glass puzzle piece, as Nebiros was holding a gold glass puzzle piece.

Each team member began to dive off to search for a puzzle piece, some of them emerging to the surface more unlucky than others.

Each team had one piece left underwater. Chloe had just dived in, followed by Timothy, and Daisy.

The rain had been coming down harder on the island now. They had no idea what time it was, and they had been out on the cliffs for about an hour now.

Chloe was the first to find her piece, and just barely holding her breath. She had little to no oxygen left in her lungs as she reached a rock ledge, grabbing a green glass puzzle piece.

As she rose to the top of the water, the waves came in, roaring with a giant splash, covering the rock face.

But, in the process, pushed her back down underwater further.

Daisy found her piece underneath seaweed. She quickly grabbed her piece, avoiding the seaweed, and grabbed hold of her piece.

She kicked off the ground, and swam upwards, and just in time to see the struggling, and now panicking Chloe.

She thought quickly, and continued her swim to the surface, ignoring Chloe's problems and focusing on her own.

Timothy found his gold piece inside a small cave inside the rock face. Quickly, he pulled it out, and not seeing the cracks on the glass as he swam up.

But as he did, he saw a horrifying sight.

The waves had pushed Chloe down, and she, like Mickey, was drowning.

He swam up quickly, kicking his feet at a fast rate. In matter of seconds, he closed the gap between him and her, wrapping his arms around her waist, and shot up to the surface, swimming through the powerful waves.

It all happened so quick, that Chloe thought she was already dead as soon as she hit the surface of the water.

"You saved me?" Chloe asked him in astonishment, and completely shocked anyone would go out of their way to save someone like her from the possibility of death.

"Of course I did! Is it wrong to not help others?" Timothy responded calmly, and strangely, extremely positively.

"Timothy! Hurry!" Jade yelled from the shore as Daisy placed in the final part of her puzzle. The Phoenixes cheered as Clifford watched from atop the cliff.

"The Phantom Phoenixes won! Who is getting second place?"

Chloe and Timothy exchanged glances, and began their swam to the shore, both teams cheering on their respective teammates.

Timothy reached the shore first, but almost as soon as he stepped onto the shore, the piece in his hand cracked further, before finally shattering, and stopping the positive guy in his steps.

Chloe ran ashore, and quickly began on putting her piece in.

"What did you do, Timothy?" Jace asked, looking at the shattered pieces.

"He broke it." Jack answered for him.

"No, no, we can still win!" Timothy replied, grabbing small shattered pieces, and lining them up with each other.

"Game over!" Clifford yelled. "Venomous Vipers, you've won. Carnivorous Claws, I'm afraid that I'll be seeing you tonight."

* * *

The elimination area was different from the others in prior seasons. They were inside a smaller, and comfortable cabin. Each contestant a part of the Claws sat on the couches.

This was the first time Clifford was seen without holding his umbrella over his head, but instead using it as a cane.

Graves showed a platter to the contestants, seven marshmallows sat on it.

The fireplace had been lit by Brendan, who was standing next to it with a fire poker in his hand.

"Welcome to the elimination ceremony, Claws. Just like how you should all know by now, marshmallows represent life. Both literally and figuratively, in a way."

Graves chuckled, but the others just looked confused to what Clifford meant.

"Point is, you've all cast your votes. And for the first elimination ceremony of the season, it was a close one. The following marshmallows are to the following:

"Irina.

"Jerome.

"Erica.

"Jade.

"Jack.

"And Jace."

That left Krystal and Timothy. For the first time, Timothy looked worried. He didn't want to be sent home first.

Krystal looked entirely confident, on the other hand. Timothy screwed up. He was gone.

"Timothy."

Timothy looked up in shock, the marshmallow landing in his lap. Krystal opened her eyes in shock, and she did it just in time to see Graves toss the marshmallow to Timothy instead of HER.

"Krystal, you have been eliminated." Clifford spoke as Graves turned around and locked the door. Confusion spread over the remaining contestants.

Krystal stood up. "You're tearing me apart, Clifford!"

"Cute." Clifford remarked as Brendan walked over to her and gripped her wrist.

When they hadn't noticed, Brendan had wheeled in the electric chair from the season two aftermath.

"Before we send you on your way, a small punishment must be served first." Clifford told her.

"Krystal doesn't understand." Krystal asked in confusion, setting herself in the chair. Cuffs sprung out of the chair, sticking her to it as Graves lowered the helmet onto her head.

Brendan grabbed a knob on the side of the chair, and turned up the electricity as far as it could go.

All the while this happened, Clifford had removed a remote from his pocket. He smiled darkly as he faced the seven contestants on the sofa.

"Krystal. You were right about one thing.

"I am tearing you apart."

He pressed the button on the remote, and in an instant, the thousands of volts were sent into Krystal's brain. The girl let out a scream of pure pain. Her body was shaking.

The contestants looked to Clifford, then to Krystal. When was he gonna stop it!?

The electricity flowed through the girl, and finally, she dropped her head.

Clifford pressed the button, and the chair stopped it's lethal electrocution.

Brendan removed the helmet, and what was seen was her brown hair, burnt. The top of her head looked as if it had been set on fire. Her eyes were completely black.

The unlock of a door was heard, and Graves opened the front door.

"Why?" Irina finally asked, having enough in her to voice her thoughts.

Clifford looked over at Irina, then changed his focus to the rest of the cast.

"Do any of you know what the word 'paspinêw' means?"

"You're insane!" Jerome yelled at Clifford, to which he looked over at him.

"Not quite. That would require me suffering from a mental illness, or derangement. I don't suffer either. So I ask again, what does the word 'paspinêw' mean?"

"We don't know." Erica calmly told him, much to his appreciation.

"I assumed not. As you all now know, this island is named Paspinêw. Which is the Cree word for 'Death'."

"Death Island." Jack concluded, looking down at his feet.

"Bingo." Brendan spoke for the first time, unstrapping Krystal's body from the chair.

Clifford grabbed his umbrella and walked to the door, and shut it behind him once he walked out.

"Isn't it funny how, in just seconds, a living person is no longer in the body that they inhabited? It's fascinating. Soon, we're going to see who is going to die next, and who is going to believe the Carnivorous Claws that Krystal is really dead?

"I guess we'll all find out on the next episode of Total Drama Zenith!"


	2. Memory Lane

**AN: Well, this chapter did not turn out how I would've liked it to...so...yeah, I don't think it's very good, but you tell me your opinion.**

 **AZW330: Thank you! I'm glad you like the way I wrote Timothy, and I hope I can make it continue, if that makes sense. And again, thank you!**

 **gracey-marie: Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying my writing, and so far, the story as a whole! I'm also glad you think I portrayed Mickey almost perfectly, thank you again!**

 **ShadowJcreed: I know, a lot of my stories are quite dark, huh? Well...at least they aren't as dark as this, but...**

 **TheAllTimeGreatest: I never really liked the way the contestants were introduced one by one, so I changed it up a bit this time around. I am thankful for your criticism, and some of that will be partially explained in this episode! Oh, also, the reason I didn't have the characters interact very much was because I thought I did a lot of that on the plane, but, either way, thank you for the advice, my friend! I appreciate it! I'm not too sure how many episodes the detective will be in, I know for a fact he won't be in every episode, but definitely a few of them. Clifford is an evil, evil man. I would like to say that it is being broadcasted, but it is a bit of a liability, isn't it? Haha! All will be explained, though! Also, no, none of the contestants knew that this is what they auditioned for, they thought it was going to be a regular TD season...just without Chris. I'm glad you think I portrayed Erica nicely, thank you! I'm not gonna lie, Dylan was a character I had to add in last minute for reasons I BLAME MYSELF! Yeah...so, Dylan may be a work in progress...yeah.**

 **Pastatoxic2: Thank you! Eduardo is an interesting fellow to write, but he is very amusing at the same time! Timothy and Krystal, you hear that!? You made a good character! (I made Ted) Who knows, maybe we will, maybe we won't. And thank you!  
**

 **prestoncampbell2001: I guess we'll have to read and find out.**

 **yeezynight14: Yeah, sorry about that. I just didn't see too much I was able to do with her, so...yeah.**

 **gabage6 2: Yes. Just...Yes.**

 **Checkmate King: Thank you! Hunter will get some more attention, my man! Just keep in mind that we have twenty-four characters total.**

 **TheGamingMonkey: Yes. One down, what, twenty-three to go. I'm glad you like Jewel so far, I hope it'll live to your standards.**

 **Noah: Thank you!**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: We'll see! Thank you, and I'm glad you like Ted!**

* * *

Memory Lane

The gray clouds never stopped raining throughout the night. And the next morning, drops splattered softly against the ocean water, adding layers and layers to the ocean waves.

Raindrops slid off of a black umbrella, held by a man on the dock of the mystery island. Clifford Lane was ready to do the recap.

"Previous on Total Drama Zenith: the twenty-four contestants were introduced, and quite literally thrown into a challenge via airdrop. There was no time for a tour, the less they no about the island, the better.

"Three teams were formed, and possible short handed friendships were created. The first challenge was a puzzle hunt for glass pieces in an underwater challenge, and a few people did almost drown. But in the end, it was truly the Carnivorous Claws that cracked their chances. No pun intended.

"Of course, the contestants expect a normal elimination ceremony, and they had been surprised to watch Krystal get the electric chair. So now, we're down to twenty-three, and one of them is going to die. Hopefully new friendships will form, and then we get to watch them crumble first hand. But find out every answer on this episode of Total Drama Zenith!"

* * *

Sixteen of the now twenty-three people cast had no idea of the horrific murder than just occurred during elimination. While the Venomous Vipers and Phantom Phoenixes slept peacefully, most members of the Carnivorous Claws had stayed up during the night. And even when they did sleep, they had nightmares.

Krystal's death replayed in their minds, over and over. They had no clue that this was what they had signed up for. But it was being filmed!? And broadcasted internationally!?

How did the government approve this? Clifford Lane is killing teens on television, and he's getting away with it.

Elsie had been alone in her bedroom, her eyes wide with shock and fear. At any moment, Clifford is gonna enter her room and say it was all a prank.

But he never did.

Irina was in her bedroom and, although frightened, she kept her fear well hidden, in a calm state.

Erica's brain was working. Just from that last...execution, she realized that twenty-two more people would have to die for her to live. And judging from how the game may pan out, people would be willing to eliminate the threats first. That put her at a major risk.

Jade and Jerome were having similar thoughts to one another. The likelihood of them surviving this game was very low. Jade didn't believe in her eyes that she saw Krystal die in front of her. She couldn't sleep through the night, despite knowing that she wouldn't be hurt as of now. And the same thoughts had gone through Jerome's mind.

Jace, like most of the others on his team, had too been frightened. He auditioned for this game to win a million dollars, but now he's competing with his life! He has to win. If he doesn't, isn't it obvious? He'll die.

Timothy, the normally optimistic guy, was actually quite scared after what he watched. He voted off Krystal, and he felt as if he killed her.

And finally, there had been Jack.

From the moment they landed, Jack knew something was wrong. He kept a close eye on Clifford's body movements, but he didn't give too much away. That night he voted for Krystal. He knew the psycho would be easy to manipulate, and she proved to be a threat.

How did he know? Her body language gave it away. She practically set herself up for a fall during the challenge.

All in all, he was definitely feeling relaxed about how he planned his time in the competition. So what if they died? It wasn't like he was going to see them again anyway.

The following morning, the rain had died down bit, and the three teams left their individual team rooms, down to the mess hall, where Brendan was serving breakfast.

Emily seemed to be the only contestant to notice the uncomfortable looks on almost each member of the Carnivorous Claws.

"What's wrong with them?" She moodily asked Roxie, who had been sitting next to her. In response, the girl looked across the table at the rival team, and immediately grew a worried look.

"I guess that the elimination was hard for them. I hope they feel better soon." She commented. Emily glanced at her, perplexed with her response.

Across the table, Jewel sat down with her tray next to Hunter, who had been picking at his food with a fork.

Jewel looked up, just in time to see Travis sit himself down. He flashed Jewel a charismatic smile, digging his fork into his pancake, cutting it.

As the flirt began to eat, he was unaware of the small amount of blood running from Jewel's nose. The only one at the table to notice this had been Hunter, who, thinking quickly, grabbed his napkin and handed it over to her.

Jewel muttered a quick thanks, and pressed the napkin to her nose. She glanced back at Hunter, who was now back to eating his food.

At the third table, the Venomous Vipers sat smug in their victory. Eduardo slung his arms around Chloe and Marisa's shoulders, to which both of them gained uncomfortable looks, and took a quick glance at each other.

"I think we're gonna be a good team here." Alexei commented with a grin, looking over his teammates.

"Yes! Me too!" Lizzy agreed, smiling up at Alexei. "What do you guys think the next challenge will be?"

Eduardo opened his mouth to perform a 'smooth' line, but was promptly cut off by Dylan, who hadn't looked up from his breakfast.

"Considering we haven't seen much of the island at all, that would be my guess." He dryly answered

This time it was Marisa who spoke up. "If that's so, do you think we'll see some snakes?"

"Snakes?" Kevin whimpered from his spot at the table, glancing up at the others.

Marisa shrugged. "I like snakes. They're pretty cool."

"I guess so." Kevin shyly replied, looking back down at his tray.

Marisa cast a smile at Kevin, turning her attention to the rest of her team.

Eduardo grew a sly smile, looking at Dylan. "So, señior, what do you say I lead the team today?"

Dylan looked annoyingly up at Eduardo. "Why? No, I'm not letting you take control of this team. I'm not an idiot, Eduardo, I know what you're doing."

Before Eduardo could retaliate, the door flew open, and Clifford stepped in. Almost as soon as he did, the majority of the Claws' eyes turned into a glare, watching as the new host walked down the center of the tables.

"I hope you all had a good rest last night, because I have a brand new challenge."

Before Clifford could continue, Jade shouted out at him. "Murderer!"

"'Murderer'?" Clifford repeated, seemingly dumbfounded.

"You killed Krystal." Jade spat. Clifford raised an eyebrow, secretly amused that she would be making herself look like an idiot for the moment. Who was she to convince?

"Clifford killed Krystal?" Daisy chuckled, shaking her head. "Do you have any idea how stupid you sound?"

Jade glanced around the room quickly, noticing that almost every contestant was staring at her. She looked down at the table, keeping her mouth closed.

Clifford smirked slightly. "As I was saying, today's challenge can be said to be a type of throwback to season one. It's military."

Graves threw open the door, stepping in. "Contestants will drop out of the military challenge, one by one, until one person is left, and has completed the challenge for their team," Clifford continued, "And we begin...now."

* * *

A pair of black combat boots slammed into the mud, followed by brown high-heeled boots. The owner of these high-heeled boots was Irina, walking along side Nebiros, and both of them just behind Graves.

Clifford walked from the sidelines, his umbrella held high over his head as the rain still came down. The sight of the scared and worried Carnivorous Claws amused him deeply.

The three teams were marching along the mud, Graves in the lead with Brendan at the very back. The Phantom Phoenixes walked just behind the Claws, and it was Daisy who was in front of them with a confident smile.

"I hope this isn't the whole challenge." Roxie commented to Hunter, who nodded, digging his hands into his pockets.

"I doubt it." Hunter replied with a shrug. "It looks like we're just having a small your of the island right now."

"You make a good point." Roxie smiled.

Ahead of them, Ted was talking to Daisy. "The reason we took the gold last time was because I am the captain!"

Ted's statement got a glare from Daisy. She grabbed her shirt and showed Ted her badges. "I've been with the girl scouts for ten years, I know how to lead a team!"

"That may be, missy, but it's the pirate code that leads a crew to the treasure!"

* * *

Confessional: Daisy

"It's amazing how much an idiot some people can be." She said spitefully, crossing her arms.

* * *

Mickey's eyes had been glued to the ground, watching out for small holes to quickly step over. "I hope the whole challenge will be like this." He murmured to himself, but just loud enough for Emily to hear as she walked past.

"This show is run by Total Drama producers, they always have something in mind." She replied. Mickey looked nervous for a second, and his eyes shifted back towards the ground.

The Venomous Vipers were walking at the back, with Brendan walking just behind them. Elsie was giving Eduardo tips on cleaning his skin to get rid of his pimples, but he really wasn't listening.

"If you use moisturizer every day you'll get rid of your pimples." She told him. Eduardo put on a fake smile and grabbed Elsie's hand. "Thank you for the tip, señiorita!" He smiled.

Quickly, Eduardo began to lower his lips to Elsie's hand, but was stopped by Dylan. "Seriously? You flatter yourself too much."

Eduardo retracted himself and looked at Dylan. "I'm sure he's only trying to be nice." Alexei spoke up.

"Or!" Chloe cut in, examining Eduardo closely. "Maybe the real Eduardo was abducted and the aliens are trying to find out human behavior!"

Eduardo, Dylan, Kevin, and Marisa looked at Chloe strangely.

"Sorry, but I agree with Alexei on this one." Lizzy spoke, her eyebrow raised slightly.

Before anyone could say anymore, they noticed three identical military training courses. The first stage was to do a jump and roll, which would lead into a run where a contestant would swing from one metal bar to the next. The next stage would be to climb a wall, and jump down and crawl underneath barbed wire. Next to each course was a sign with each team logo.

Clifford walked from the sidelines path, right next to Graves. "Welcome to the first part of your challenge. Just like yesterday, today's challenge is simple. This time, be the first team to finish the course. Easy as that."

"It seems to be easier said than done." Jade observed, looking at the course closely.

Clifford just shrugged. "The two teams to not complete the course will compete in part two." He said, stepping out of the way of the course. "Graves?"

Graves smiled, looking at the three teams. "Begin!"

The teams quickly split off, running to their each individual course. Erica ran onto the wooden ramp for the Claws, her feet lifting and touching the ground. She extended her arms, and jumped.

The freerunner flew forward a good couple feet before heading back downwards, and braced for impact, holding out her arms. Her hands slammed into the ground, and she was launched forward. Ducking her head, she did a successful roll, and sprinted to the metal bars.

Jack quickly followed Erica's lead, leaving the rest of his team behind.

As the Claws advanced their own into the challenge, Alexei of the Vipers had run up the ramp, and completed the same action Erica successfully did. He was then quickly followed by Marisa and Dylan.

Marisa gripped onto the metal bar, just behind Alexei, and swung herself, dropping one arm to swing it across to the next bar, and grabbed hold. The pattern continued until she herself had made it across the water pit.

As this all had occurred, Jewel for the Phoenixes had completed the first stage, and was on the bars, and quickly being followed by a determined Daisy.

She swung her hand to the final bar, and let herself fall to the ground, and ran to the wooden wall, with three ropes dangling from the top.

Jewel found her own hand wrap around one of the ropes, as she pushed herself off the ground, and held onto the rope, keeping her feet on the wooden wall that she was to climb. Daisy followed quickly, surpassing her climb, and leaping over the wall.

Jewel glanced down at the mud below and noticed Travis, Hunter, and Emily grabbing a rope to climb to where she now was.

Back for the Claws, each team member was now somewhere on the course. Jade was having a difficult time climbing the wall. Timothy climbed past her. "Good luck!" He smiled, reaching the top.

Jerome climbed up past Jade, and glanced back at her once he managed to the top. "Hurry up!" He yelled at her, before jumping over the wall.

Up ahead, Jace was crawling carefully through, under the barbed wire. He glanced quickly at the Phoenixes course, and noticed Emily, Roxie, and Mickey crawling under the barbed wire. Thinking quickly, he reached down into the mud, and grabbed hold of a small branch.

Jace pried the branch from the ground, and tossed it as hard as he could at the wooden beam supporting the barbed wire, successfully knocking them down, and injuring Emily and Roxie. He smiled at his handiwork, and crawled quickly through the course.

Meanwhile, Eduardo's hoodie snagged on the barbed wire, and he began to tug at it to pry it off. Dylan, Chloe, Alexei, Lizzy, and Marisa had finished the course, and were now waiting on Eduardo, Kevin, and Elsie.

Even as they waited, it started coming down to the wire when the Claws had Jack, Timothy, Erica, Jace, and Jerome finished with the course, and waiting on Jade and Irina.

Emily winced as she watched Roxie use her hand to lift the barbed wire over herself, Emily, and Mickey.

"I say it again, HURRY UP!" Jerome yelled at Jade and Irina, both of them crawling under the barbed wire.

Eduardo tore his hoodie, the barbed wire shredding right through it. He growled in annoyance before quickly crawling to the rest of his team, with Kevin and Elsie right behind him.

Jade crawled out of the barbed wire, finishing the course just as Emily crawled out of the tight area, leaving Roxie and Mickey behind.

Ted crossed his arms, looking over at the barbed wire that the Claws had crawled through. "I'd be damned if ye beat my crew to the treasure!"

He ran to the Claws' barbed wire, and kicked the wooden beam, allowing the wires to collapse onto Nebiros and Irina.

Irina, already being halfway through, looked panicked at Nebiros. The barbed wire had cut right through him.

Erica and Timothy grabbed her by her shoulders, and pulled her from under the barbed wire, freeing her. She couldn't believe that the barbed wire cut right through Nebiros.

She looked back over at Ted, and glared hatefully at him.

"The Carnivorous Claws have won the first challenge!" Clifford announced. It appeared that Roxie had climbed out, and Mickey in the middle of climbing out. Elsie, Kevin, and Eduardo had also climbed out.

"Claws, you are safe for elimination tonight. Let's find out which team it is that will win when we return on Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

The camera fades out, but somewhere southern to Canada, detective John Corrow was watching security footage over and over regarding the murder.

There wasn't many CCTV cameras on the street, specifically the New York alley that Chris McLean walked down before he died.

Whoever the killer was, they covered their tracks well. From the knife stabs, Corrow determined it was a combat knife as the murder weapon. But that didn't narrow it down.

McLean had been in a meeting, fifteen minutes prior to his death. No CCTV cameras caught him even entering the alley.

Why would someone go through the effort of killing a reality TV host? What was the point?

Now, Corrow was on his way to one of the producers of McLean's show, Total Drama. He had been living in a hotel temporarily before he was to fly back in to Canada.

But even as he drove, not all of the pieces came together. Too many coincidences.

The new season was being aired, and two people were dead. Chris McLean, and a girl named Krystal. But why couldn't they trace back where it was being filmed from?

Maybe Jonathan McGillis could answer that question for him.

Corrow rolled his 2017 Dodge Charger into the hotel parking lot. Looking up at the white silver building, he assumed it had up to twenty stories.

Police officers stood on the ground level, and one of them nodded to Corrow as he walked through the door of the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel.

It was quite decorative inside. Three hotel staff in red uniforms stood behind the counter, giving people their rooms.

Corrow started to the staff, remembering slightly back to the police officers outside. Why were they there? He knew both of them, so why were they here?

"Welcome to the Sheraton Hotel, sir. How may I serve you?" The woman at the counter, her name tag read 'Michelle', asked him.

"I need Jonathan McGillis' room, ma'am." Corrow responded, reaching into his suit pocket and showing his police badge.

Her eyes seemed to widen, and she looked hesitant. He noticed her eyes quickly glance around the lobby, before finally settling back on him.

"Top floor, the suite."

Corrow nodded a thanks, and made his way to the elevator.

At the top floor, two men in suits stood by a door. The elevator door open, and Corrow stepped out, noticing both guards. What was going on?

The guards had to frisk him, removing his pistol off him, and let him in.

A blond haired man sat on the couch. He was wearing a red and black checkered flannel, with a white button-up shirt, and black tie. He was wearing black suit pants.

His hair was nicely gelled and styled, a dirty-blond beard growing.

He stood up, and looked at Corrow, a small smile on his face.

"Detective John Corrow." Corrow told him. The man nodded. "Jonathan Bertrand Thomas McGillis." He replied, giving out his full name instead of just his first and last names.

"I'm just here to ask a few questions."

"I haven't done anything."

"I hope not."

"...Fine. What do you need?"

"You were in a meeting with Chris McLean recently?"

"Yes. We were planning a new Total Drama season."

"And how did that go?"

"Pleasantly. It was to be called 'Total Drama Paspinêw Island', and we were planning it for months. McLean was looking for an island. And he did find one eventually. Some kind of 'cursed' island. Chef Hatchet referred to it as a 'ghost island'.

"Point is, McLean nor Chef revealed it's location to anyone at the studio. The meeting was McLean's thoughts and picks on the audition tapes. We planned for fourteen."

Corrow looked increasingly confused as the explanation went on. "Are you aware of the new season?"

"Are you kidding?" McGillis asked, suddenly angry.

"I have nothing to do with that 'season'. The other producers left, and took a couple ten thousand dollars with them. We had thirty thousand dollars in the bank for 'Paspinêw Island', but after we found out about McLean's death, the other producers took the money and ran.

"It's funny. Out of all of them, I'm the only one with a brain to hire someone to protect me. McLean's killer isn't coming after me."

Corrow couldn't help but roll his eyes. "So what's going on?"

"Have you not figured it out yet?

"Whoever this guy is, he's hijacked the show!

"You really are clueless, aren't you?"

* * *

Clifford watched as the Phantom Phoenixes and Venomous Vipers walked in. They were on the edge of the foggy graveyard, the rain still pouring in.

On a wooden table that Brendan had wheeled in, were sixteen purple colored pistols.

"Welcome to part two of today's challenge. Once again, the challenge is simple. About to be released into this graveyard are actors. Your job is to shoot them with this paintball gun."

Graves demonstrated, grabbing one of the pistols, and aimed at Brendan. He pulled the trigger, and a red paintball was launched, splattering over Brendan's shirt in a red substance. A gunshot sound rang out.

"The team to hit most of these actors wins, and the other goes to elimination tonight. Begin."

Almost immediately, the teams reached for a purple pistol from the table, and ran into the graveyard. As the teams disappeared from sight, Clifford looked over his shoulder at Graves.

"I hope none of them shoot each other."

* * *

Travis was shaking. He had eremophobia. He needed company, and badly. He had no idea where his teammates were. He lost them almost as soon as they stepped into the graveyard.

He took a step, and jumped back in fear when he heard the sound of a gunshot.

Unbeknownst to Travis, it was Dylan who had fired off the gun. He found one of the actors, and shot a paintball at the back of his head, dropping him.

"Did you get him?" Lizzy asked, walking up after hearing the gunshot.

"He's gonna want to get it checked out. Looks like it hurt." Dylan replied, wincing slightly.

"Watch out!" A girl shouted, quickly followed by another gunshot.

"Who was that?" Dylan asked Lizzy quickly.

Lizzy paused, aiming her gun up at where the sound came from. Finally, she dropped it to her side. "Marisa."

Dylan nodded. "Good."

Several yards away, Roxie was searching for the actors with Emily.

In fact, Emily seemed to be thinking about something. Though, she kept her guard up, shifting her pistol around whenever she found it necessary.

"So, why'd you join the show?" Roxie asked, breaking the silence between the two.

Emily groaned with irritation, and looked at Roxie. "I don't want to be here." She said, narrowing her eyes.

Roxie took a step back, Emily's glare terrifying her.

Before Roxie could do much of anything, another shot rang out, followed by a "ARGH!" From someone that sounds like a pirate.

Even as this all happened, Travis was absolutely terrified. He had pinned himself against a gravestone, and slightly delusional.

"What's happening? Why am I all alone?" He whispered, his face full of fear and sheer terror.

A bit away, Eduardo was talking to Chloe, and she was definitely uncomfortable with the turn of events. "So, what kind of conspiracy theories do you believe in?"

Chloe opened her mouth to speak, but seemed to change her mind, and said something else instead. "I'll tell you if you tell me what theories you're into."

Eduardo paused, glancing at her. "You know that theory where the Earth is flat?"

* * *

Confessional: Chloe

"Some may call me a conspiracy theorist, but I like to think of myself as a realist. The government tries to cover up so much, and the news is just feeding society with lies! It's a big brainwash! One giant brainwash!

"Except for the whole flat Earth thing, the Earth is actually round."

* * *

Eduardo fired off a shot, hitting an actor's chest, and knocking him to the ground.

"You like that?" Eduardo smirked, looking to Chloe, who just shrugged uncaringly. Eduardo rolled his eyes, and spun his pistol in his hand. "I know you are, señiorita."

Before anything could escalate any further, both teams heard Clifford's voice through a megaphone. "The challenge is over! Every actor has been shot, please report back to the front of the graveyard."

Both teams made their way back to the graveyard entrance, and Brendan had to drag Travis in, pushing him alongside his teammates.

"I've been keeping track of the score, and I think it is very safe to say that the Venomous Vipers have won the challenge."

This simple, and somewhat bored announcement earned cheers from Dylan, Chloe, Kevin, Elsie, and Eduardo.

"Leave the paintball guns here, and I want to see you, Phoenixes, tonight and voting."

* * *

Both teams entered the cabins, and the Phoenixes were definitely not happy this time around. "I can't believe we lost!" Daisy exclaimed, looking back at Mickey and Jewel.

"You two need to step up your game!"

Mickey looked downcast at his feet.

* * *

Following hours of debating of who to vote off between the Phoenixes, they started off to the elimination cabin. They knew who they wanted gone: Daisy.

But, that was all quickly changed.

As Mickey, Jewel, Hunter, Emily, and Roxie walked down to the elimination cabin, they couldn't help but notice Jack scribbling down something on a notepad.

"What's that?" Hunter asked, curious to what he was holding.

Jack quickly looked up at them, holding the notebook close, but let himself drop it in his arms slightly at seeing who it was.

"Nothing, it's just something I found from Jace's room."

That got their attention.

"Your looking at your own teammates things?" Emily asked, her eyebrow raised.

"I am. He makes a few good points. He says that Travis could prove to be a threat, like a possible second Alejandro. Stuff like that." With that, he stood up and began to walk off.

"I should return this."

That definitely got the few of them to reconsider the elimination votes.

* * *

The contestants cast their votes, and now sat on a couch in front of Clifford, Brendan, and Graves.

Once Travis returned from making his vote, Graves locked the door. Brendan held the platter in front of Clifford.

"The votes are in. If you don't get a marshmallow, yout team has spoken, and you're eliminated." He told them, grabbing one of the seven marshmallows on the plate.

"The first player safe is...Mickey."

Mickey heaved a sigh of relief, cupping his hands to catch his marshmallow.

"Hunter."

Hunter cracked a smile, raising his hand to catch his marshmallow.

"Emily. Roxie."

The two girls caught their marshmallows with almost no effort at all.

"Jewel."

Jewel caught her marshmallow with a smile.

"That leaves Ted, Travis, and Daisy." Clifford announced, holding two marshmallows.

"Daisy, you definitely got lucky today."

Daisy caught her marshmallow, a grin on her face. "As if I would be eliminated second!"

"And so, the final marshmallow goes to...Ted."

"Argh! I know how to survive a mutiny, ye know." He said, catching his marshmallow.

"Cool." Clifford dryly replied, nodding to Graves.

Travis slouched over, defeated.

"Before we send you off, I must thank you for helping me these legal problems."

Brendan pulled a tarp off a trolley, revealing the actors that had been shot.

"They weren't actors. Who they are doesn't matter." Clifford reached for one of the bodies, and flipped him over, showing a gunshot wound in his head.

"What the hell?" Emily whispered in shock.

Graves opened a cabinet, and reached in. What he pulled out was definitely horrifying.

A baseball bat with metal shards sticking from it.

Travis stood up to his feet, but almost as soon as he did, Graves brought the bat down, slamming it into his collarbone, and knocking him to the floor. Blood leaked from his wound.

Hunter ran to the door, and began to attempt to open it.

"No! You voted for him, so you put him through this." Clifford ordered, removing a Ruger SR1911 from his coat pocket.

Hunter eyed the gun, and hesitantly stepped away from the door, and back to the couch.

Travis looked up from the ground at his former teammates with pleading eyes, just as Graves threw his arms in an up and down motion, smashing the bat against the side of his head.

Quickly, Daisy put her hands over Mickey's eyes, right as Graves threw down the bat once again, cracking Travis's skull open.

His messy blond platinum hair was stained in a blood red color. Blood dropped down from his nose and from his shoulder. He even spat some from his mouth.

Travis leaped backwards at Clifford with as much power as he could, grabbing his ankles in desperation.

"Please! No!"

Clifford smiled wickedly, ripping his leg from Travis's grip, and swinging back down, as foot connecting with his face.

Travis fell back a few feet, and finally Graves raised the bat over his head once more. Travis screamed in pure terror, and finally, Graves brought the bat down. And his vision went black.

Travis's body went limp, and Graves pulled the bat from the deceased body.

Brendan unlocked the door, opening it.

"Have a good night." Clifford smiled.

Almost at once, the contestants bolted out the exit, and hurried as fast as they could back to the cabin.

Turning his attention to the camera, Clifford began the outro.

"Another day of pure torture on Paspinêw Island has come to an end. But, don't go away, we are coming back very soon with another episode of Total Drama Zenith!"

* * *

Confessional: Jack

"Do I care that Travis is dead? Not really. I didn't know him. All his death brings to the table is another free step to further myself into this game, and as another to find out the defenses of these players."


	3. One Long Drop

**AN: Forgive me for this chapter's challenge shortness, I just didn't wanna do the same thing for every contestant, y'know? Anyway, here we go! Oh yeah, one other thing! _Send me your character backstories! I may have forgotten it in the application, but now I remember that it is just as important as everything else!_**

 **ShadowJcreed: Jack faked the whole thing, although, and I'd like to tell you something, but I don't want to spoil anything. Anyway, thank you and I hope you enjoy this episode!**

 **DrOcten: Thank you, and here it is!**

 **AZW330: Thank you! The investigation may take a bit of shift this episode, but I wouldn't say anything major. I hope you enjoy today's episode!**

 **yeezynight14: Yeah, Travis's death was probably one of the more brutal ones. Clifford may not think he's insane, but yeah, he's definitely insane. I'm glad you're enjoying the whole police thing, and I hope you enjoy it today!**

 **gracey-marie: Yup, poor Travis. I think he and Krystal definitely got the short end of the stick. If I don't get to develop every contestant, you'll be seeing me develop Clifford, because that guy is interesting to write. Daisy is also an interesting character to write, and..wow. Yeah, I'm afraid that if I want to give every character development, I'll have to focus on others for a time before I do get to them, which means that some people will have more...read time than others, which is unfortunate because I got a lot of really cool characters, but only some will last longer than others. Don't worry, the more the contestants dwindle, the much more character development we'll see. I hope you enjoy today's episode!**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: I wouldn't necessarily say he was a flat character, I just saw too much of Justin in him, so I decided to drop him there. We'll see a lot more of the interesting characters develop...even if it'll take a while. I don't blame you about the challenges, but starting next episode I plan for them to be a lot more entertaining than a challenge like the last one...or maybe this one? Anyway, I'm kinda surprised you do like Marisa, because I haven't given her much time to develop yet, but, meh, that's your opinion and someone can't change that. Also, I think you reviewed on my deleted chapter 2, so that's why it wasn't letting you.**

* * *

One Long Drop

The rain continued to come down, seemingly endlessly. It splattered against the dock in a soft pitter-patter motion, dripping off the wooden boards into the water below.

Clifford Lane smiled deviously at the camera, his umbrella held high over his head, and very ready to do the recap.

"Last time on Total Drama Zenith: the teams became somewhat used to Paspinêw Island's unstoppable nature, and I don't think much of them had been happy about it.

"The teams were forced to bond, although it was clear that not everybody was aware of the literal killer secrets this season held. And now, two teams know the secret. At challenge time, the teams had to complete an obstacle course, and we lost Nebiros in the midst of it all.

"Then, it was a shootout in the local graveyard, and the Phantom Phoenixes were the ones defeated. And, as a result, it was Daisy who was going to die. That is until Jack switched the votes on them, and they had to watch the flirter, Travis, get his head bashed in.

"We're two contestants down, and twenty-two to go, who is going to die this time? We'll just have to wait and see on this episode of Total Drama Zenith!"

* * *

Terror.

Absolute terror was the feeling that the Phantom Phoenixes had faced only hours ago. They watched a young man die in front of them, begging and pleading for his own life.

And it was to happen again. Twenty. One. More times.

Each contestant had a mix of feelings, but one of the most saddened ones cried throughout the night at the thought of Travis's death. And that person was none other than Mickey.

Sure he hadn't known him well at all, but nobody, nobody, deserved the fate that Travis received.

Nor had he been expecting it at all.

Emily was staring up at the ceiling of her room. Travis's death came at a surprise for her, and she voted for Ted.

The loner couldn't help but groan when she noticed the dark clouds just get a little bit lighter through her window blinds, and began to dress herself out of her white tank top and black shorts, putting on her usual wear.

As she opened the door to her room, she almost bumped into Kevin, who was just now walking past her room, his nose in a book. Something about diseases, Emily discovered from the book's bindage.

"Sorry." Kevin quietly apologized, looking up at Emily before he quickly scurried off.

"Whatever." Emily muttered, stepping out of her room and shutting her door behind her.

She began her walk downstairs where most of the other contestants were eating breakfast, quietly brainstorming her own game plan on how she was going to get out of here alive.

She was taken out of her thoughts by Timothy, who walked on past her. "Good morning!" He said cheerfully, an optimistic smile on his face.

Emily almost scoffed at him. How could it possibly be a good morning!? Two people are dead! The fact that he still had parts of positivity in him made her sick to her stomach.

Downstairs, Ted, Jewel, Mickey, Daisy, Hunter, and Roxie were eating at the Phantom Phoenixes table, in which, across from them, Jack, Jade, Erica, Irina, Jerome, and Jace were eating their own breakfast at the Claws table. And finally, Chloe, Dylan, Eduardo, Elsie, Lizzy, Marisa, and Alexei were eating at the Vipers table.

Kevin quietly entered the room, folding his book in his hoodie pocket, setting himself down at the Vipers table next to Marisa.

In a normal situation, Timothy's smile would've brightened up the room when he walked in, but the only person who seemed to brighten at his presence was Chloe, who waved happily at him, and he waved back.

Almost just as Timothy settled down at the Claws' table, Emily entered the room without a word, and almost as quietly as Kevin did when he himself entered. She sat herself down at the Phoenixes table, and rested her elbow on the table, her fist on her head.

"Looks like they killed Travis." Jace noticed quietly, glancing towards Erica, who nodded slowly.

"Makes sense," Jace continued, "he would've been a threat."

"Don't speak ill of the dead." Irina argued, holding her right hand with her left, attempting to stop the frequent twitching in her hand.

"Not like it matters, the guy's dead." Jerome muttered, cynically.

"That might be true, but he was still a person." Irina calmly told him. In response, Jerome rolled his eyes.

Across the room, Lizzy glanced out the window and saw Brendan talking with another intern, this one holding a briefcase with a gold plated name on the top, spelling out the name: 'Travis' in gold letters. Of course, she couldn't see that.

Before Lizzy could ask the question regarding Brendan and the other intern, the door was promptly opened, and two people stepped in: Clifford and Graves.

"I think it's time we should address the elephant in the room." Clifford commented, walking down the aisle and bringing each contestant's attention to a dark red curtain at the end of the hall.

"And what does that mean?" Hunter asked, eyebrow raised.

Clifford's lips were pulled upwards into a malevolent grin. "What is going to happen to twenty-two of you, of course."

Graves gripped a silver rope, hanging down from the side of the curtain. He pulled it, separating the two halves of curtains from each other, and showing the deceased bodies of Krystal and Travis, both of them hanging from ropes tied around their necks.

The Claws and Phoenixes almost all looked away, as the Vipers' faces paled in absolute horror.

Chloe gasped, covering her own mouth as she looked at the two bodies. Lizzy's eyes widened in horror. Eduardo quickly looked away from the bodies.

The reaction from each of member of the Vipers changed, varying from a number of differences.

Krystal's body seemed to have started to decay, her eyes still black from the electrocution, and a majority of her hair missing from her head, and another half of her hair burnt. Her mouth was open, as if she were in mid-scream when she died.

Travis, on the other hand, didn't look as bad as Krystal's decaying body. His platinum blond hair was still stained from his dried blood. His eyes were open, as if pleading, begging with his killer to stop the tremendous amount of pain flowing through him.

"Death is a fascinating subject, is it not?" Clifford asked, smiling as he looked over the bodies without consent. "One moment, the soul of someone is there, the next, it's gone.

"But for one brief moment, the soul is both dead and alive all at the same time."

The unnamed intern burst through the door, rolling a trolley through the center of the room up to Clifford and the two bodies.

"Harvey." Clifford grinned, stepping away from the two bodies, and adjusted his eyes towards the horrified contestants.

Harvey Bender looked unusual. His skin was so tight against his body that he looked like a literal skeleton. His left eye black while his right eye light brown. It was almost comedic that he was bald, nor did he have facial hair.

His cheekbones were definitely visible, and if his skin wasn't any lighter you could mistake him for an actual skeleton. He wore a red sweater vest, along with black jeans and black boots.

Harvey loaded the bodies onto the trolley as Clifford continued as if nothing happened. "Just to allow the tension to rise further, Brendan and Harvey have hidden three immunity idols across the island. The graveyard region, only.

"These idols will not allow you to survive, but will give you a second chance to survive, instead of dying then, and there."

The malevolent host looked at each of the terrified contestant before resuming. "Now, what do you say we start today's challenge?"

* * *

"What do you think the challenge will be?" A fearful Chloe asked Timothy, who, despite being on another team, was absolutely happy to talk to the girl he saved from drowning.

"I'm not too sure, but I wouldn't worry about it being a really difficult one." Timothy replied, smiling at her, making her feel all of the more calm. "Thank you." She smiled back.

She reached down and touched her camera that she almost always had slung around her shoulders. "It's a shame, I would've liked to take pictures of the UFOs before I died." She says sadly, looking down at her feet. "It looks like it'll never happen."

"What do you mean? You'll get out of here alive!" Timothy argued, his smile turning down a bit.

"Even if then, I don't think I'll be able to see it." Chloe said, rubbing her eyes with her hoodie sleeve.

"I'm sure you would." Timothy reassured, looking down at the short girl, he rose his hand to touch her shoulder.

"You don't understand, Timothy. I have visual snow."

"Sorry?"

"Visual snow. You know the static on TV? I see that. All the time. Every day. I've been called a weirdo more times than I can remember…" She trailed off, stopping in her tracks as the other contestants walked by.

She expected Timothy to walk off and not care for the saddened girl, but when she looked up, she saw that Timothy hadn't moved from his spot, and had his eyes on the ground. It was the first time that she personally had seen him without his usual smile.

"Why would they say that?"

"Because of my beliefs." Chloe snapped. Timothy took a step back at Chloe's sudden aggression, but it was gone almost as soon as it appeared in her. "I'm sorry." She apologized.

"You don't need to apologize, Chloe." Timothy shook his head, now he too feeling sad for her.

"Yes I do. Saying something like that and then...just not apologizing isn't the right thing to do."

Hearing that, Timothy couldn't help but chuckle.

"Oh great, and Chloe Gray screws up again." Chloe groaned, taking a step towards Timothy, and to forget about him entirely. She found herself completely wrong, in that case.

He grabbed her hand, stopping her from going anywhere.

"I was laughing because that sounded a lot like something I'd do." Timothy smiled warmly. It was a smile that Chloe couldn't help but smile back.

They turned around and began on their way with the rest of their respective teams, and where the next challenge was going to take place. Even so, that didn't stop them from making conversation.

"What did you mean by your 'beliefs'?" Timothy asked, glancing down at the shorter girl.

She kept her eyes on the path ahead of her, silently contemplating if she should even tell the boy she just met days ago. Finally, she came to a decision.

"People think I'm crazy, or weird, and it's only because I don't believe in anything our government tells us...well, the American government, anyway.

"You know, I bet they have the cure for cancer, but of course they wouldn't be willing to tell anyone about it. Money talks, I guess."

Timothy nodded. He could completely understand why someone would find her weird.

"I don't think you're weird."

"You don't?"

"Nope." Timothy smiled, his trademark grin back on his lips. "I'd think of you as a realist."

This time it was Chloe's turn to chuckle.

"I said that in yesterday's confessional."

"Well it's true." Timothy shrugged.

Chloe frowned again, looking back down at her shoes. "Other people don't see me that way. I was bullied because of my theories."

"I go through bullying a lot, just don't let it get to you, Chloe."

"Someone dared his friend to date me for a week because I was the weirdest person in school." She mumbled. Timothy's grin faded once again. He wasn't even her, but even that hit him like a truck.

"I hope you get out of here alive." Timothy quietly said to no one specifically.

The two reached the end of the path, where Clifford, the teams, and Graves were standing in front of a large air-blown obstacle course.

"Welcome to your third challenge, teams. In a type of similar homage to the obstacle course challenges from seasons four and five, everything you see before you has been shipped in prior to our season's start. Now, your challenge is, once again, a simple one."

Clifford tore his eyes from the group, up to a hill slope, where a watery ramp had been prepared to go down.

"The first part of the challenge is a raft ride." He said, pointing at the slope. "The first obstacle of the challenge is to get down this slope without falling off the raft."

A majority of the contestants felt unease when they realized the camera crew were armed. The cock of a rifle gave it away. Clifford seemed to take notice of this.

"Don't worry about the camera crew. They are only authorized to shoot if one of you were to harm me, Graves, or any of the interns. So basically, anyone other than each other."

Dylan took a quick glance at one of the members of the camera crew, and to his relief, he didn't see the barrel of a rifle being pointed at anyone.

"Next up is the wall punch." Clifford said, bringing the attention back to him. He gestured towards a dark blue wall with red boxing gloves in holes, seemingly at random intervals. The fact of a thin walkway along the wall didn't help from any form of nervousness.

If the contestant were to fall, they would land in a thick pile of water. It almost led to a curious question. Was it the rain that filled it up, or was it poured in by an intern?

None of the questions were answered, and nor did they need to be, as Clifford looked towards the next obstacle. Steps were leading up to a blue shaped disc, the center of the disk colored a light red, as it sounds around at a decently fast paste.

"The rotating platform." Clifford half-narrated, looking at the platform. Just like the obstacle prior, water was filled up beneath the platform, and along the remainder of the course

Even if the contestant failed to get across the platform, a ladder led up to where they would supposed to reach.

The next obstacle was different from the others. It looked as if it were only meant to slow one down. It seemed that way, at least, considering the ominous looking black tiles along the bridge.

"The electric tiles." Clifford spoke, looking up at the platform where the tiles were. It was almost invisible, but the view of one dark blue wire stuck from the side of the tiles, a sign that the black tiles were definitely powered.

The stairs led down to ground level, where ice seemed to have frozen over where the water had been. About three yards long, the stairs led up to the obstacle following it.

"The ice walk." Clifford said, glancing briefly at the iced water, before continuing along.

The next obstacle seemed to be basic, at the least. Five sturdy beams stood upwards in the water, with five, giant, rubber red balls along each beam. They looked as though if someone were to land on them, they would be launched to the next, or simply fail altogether and fall into the water below.

"The ball jump." Clifford gestured. With no elaboration yet, he moved onto the seventh and final obstacle challenge.

Stairs led up from the ball jump up to a red platform on the edge of a giant circular container, filled with water, a rope hung from a beam that went across the pit, leading to stairs downwards, and to what seemed to look like a target.

"And lastly, the swing over the shark pit."

As if to prove his point, the nose of a shark peeked out of the container.

A handful of the contestants gasped in fear, while a majority of the rest looked frightened at the final obstacle.

"Someone could die doing that." Mickey meekly pointed out. Clifford simply shrugged, uncaringly.

"Isn't that the fun in all of this?" He asked.

Clifford didn't expect an answer, but was cut off before he could continue. "Hold on, the Vipers have a team of eight and there are seven courses." Jade noticed.

"I'm aware. Two members of the Vipers will double up."

Hearing that, a few of the female contestants of the Vipers looked nervous, particularly towards Eduardo.

"This is how this is going to work," Clifford started, rotating his umbrella slightly to block out the incoming rain. "The two teams with the fastest times win immunity for today, and the slowest time is sending someone to execute. Savvy?"

Arguing with Clifford was futile. This was a sick game they were playing, but nothing could stop it. The gears were already turning.

* * *

"So what's the plan?" Roxie asked for the Phoenixes, the seven contestants huddling together.

"I'll take the shark swing." Daisy openly volunteered.

"Are you sure?" Roxie asked, looking at Daisy unsurely.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be? I'm volunteering, aren't I?" Daisy scoffed, rolling her eyes. Instead of retaliating, Roxie nodded in understanding.

"I'll take the punch wall." Jewel said with a smile, earning a slight suspicious look from Emily.

"Why?"

"I have a high pain tolerance." Jewel proudly replied. Emily's lips tugged slightly, but she quickly forced herself back into her usual frown.

"Captain Ted'll take the raft riding, argh!" Ted announced. "Ye land lovers have no clue how to commandeer the vehicles of the sea, argh."

Hunter eyed Ted, his eyebrow raised, before quickly looking at the rest of his team. "I'll take the electric tiles." He shrugged.

"I guess I'll do the rotating platform." Roxie offered. Daisy nodded, shifting her eyes towards Mickey and Emily, who hadn't chosen anything yet.

"Emily, you're on the ball jump. Mickey, you're on the ice walk." Daisy commanded. Emily shrugged indifferently, while Mickey looked much more nervous, nonetheless, he didn't argue.

* * *

"I'll do the ice walk." The voice of Jack spoke.

The Carnivorous Claws were deciding which one of them to take which obstacle, but unlike the Phoenixes, they were much more disorganized.

"I frankly don't think it matters where we choose to go," Jerome started, "as long as we get through the obstacle fastest."

"Which is why we should organize ourselves, Jerome." Jade contradicted. "We should have the strongest people take the most difficult challenge, while-"

"Jade, we can't spend so much time on something like this. We'll each pick one obstacle at random. Besides, I'm pretty sure Erica plans to do the shark swing, anyway."

Erica raised an eyebrow.

* * *

"I'll do the wall punch." Alexei told the Vipers with a grin. Dylan shrugged. "I don't care. But we need two people to group up. Any volunteers?"

* * *

Confessional: Eduardo

"Some of you guys back home might just think of me as a pretty face, but I'm gonna let that change now. I'm putting my plan into action."

* * *

"Lizzy, señiorita, shall we partner up?"

Lizzy suddenly became completely on alert. She looked at Eduardo and groaned.

"Alright, Lzzy and Eduardo are partnered. As for everyone else, let's decide who goes where." Dylan told his team, looking over each contestant.

"Kevin, you take the raft. Elsie takes the rotating platform. Eduardo and Lizzy, you two take the electric tiles. I'll take the ice walk. Chloe can take the bouncy balls. And Marisa will take the shark swing."

* * *

"Remember to tag the next person to compete in their obstacle." Clifford reminded the three teams from the top of the hill. Next to him was Ted on the raft, sitting in the water and very ready to start the challenge.

"Ted is the first person to start, so the Phoenixes will be setting the record." Clifford told them, turning to Graves, who held a megaphone at the edge if the hill.

"Begin!" He yelled in his slight European accent.

The raft was an orange inflatable with an oar inside. Ted refused to wear any form of safety equipment, claiming he knows how to navigate a pirate ship.

On an electronic booth behind Ted, Brendan pressed a button, and Harvey pulled a lever. It was as if the panel was a dam because two vents in the water opened, and sent Ted and the raft on their way.

As soon as Ted began moving, Clifford started his stopwatch, watching as Ted removed an oar from his raft, and started to paddle along the water.

Meeting the first of three cliff sides at the edge of the hill, the raft went over, Ted quickly held out his oar, hitting the wooden paddle against the rock underwater, and keeping himself from going underwater.

He felt the sharp rocks underneath him as the raft sailed along the waves of water, pushing him along. Ted used his oar to keep himself on a course.

The white water knocked on his raft, finally stopping Ted from continuing his pace forward, and pushed him to the side, his raft's nose edging away from the side of the next cliff.

Before Ted could correct himself, the raft sailed over the cliff, and landed once again in the waters, only this time in the complete wrong way.

Ted's head popped out from under the flipped raft, gasping and spluttering. The raft floated aimlessly in the water, and, watching it, Ted hadn't noticed the next and final cliff coming up quickly on him.

The pirate snapped his head back to where he should be looking, and, just as he did, he felt himself fly over the edge of the cliff. His body was completely in the air for a brief second, before he broke from the air's grasp, and gravity caught him, and pulled him down into the water below.

Ted fell into the water, and a large splash emerged from where he fell, quickly followed by the empty raft.

The pirate's head emerged from the water, and grabbed onto the nearby short wall, leading up to the floor of the wall punch.

"Pirate's life." Ted weakly said to himself as he crawled up onto the wall. He lay on the ground as Jewel ran over to him, and tagged his hand, before running back to her own challenge.

"Thirty seconds!" Graves announced through the megaphone.

Jewel's foot made contact with the edge of the platform, red boxing gloves shooting out of the wall, and then quickly retracting back in. She clung to the wall, partially hoping that the gloves would slam out of the wall, and nail her stomach, or the side of her head…

That hope was gone in almost an instant when a boxing glove slammed into the side of her cheek, but kept her hands firmly on the wall.

Boxing gloves shot out at her as she shuffled across the ledge. In just mere seconds, she made it to the end of the wall, and slammed her hand down into Roxie's as a high-five, marking her own beginning of her own personal challenge.

Roxie spun around from Jewel, throwing her body upwards into a jump onto the blue rotating platform.

As soon as she landed, she felt herself in a constant spin, unable to stop herself from it. She rose to her knees, slowly putting one foot in front of herself to help herself up to her feet.

Forcing herself off her knees, Roxie could only see a blur of Hunter on the other end of the platform. She had one shot to make it to him, and if she failed, their time would rise. In fact, now that she thought about it, she would be the one to die.

Almost without thinking, Roxie felt herself jump out towards Hunter...and collided into the platform. Hunter dropped himself down onto his knee, allowing Roxie to touch his hand easier.

And then he was off. Roxie rolled over onto her back, taken aback by what she did to complete her part of the challenge.

Hunter ran right through the black electrical tiles, ignoring the electricity flowing through his body as his feet slammed against each black tile.

But he was unable to stop himself from his run. His legs were practically numb, and, feeling an awkwardness in his legs, he lost his balance, tumbling down the stairs to where Mickey was standing, just before the ice walk.

"Are you okay?" Mickey asked, but he was promptly quieted by Hunter. "Don't worry," he said, slapping his hand on Mickey's wrist due to Mickey's height, "just go!"

The teenage child took a deep breath...and took a step onto the ice. He could just barely feel how hollow it was underneath.

The Claws and Vipers watched from the sidelines, a good half of the contestants nervous for the boy.

The ice cracked slightly, a long line of a shatter passing underneath his feet. Mickey's heart began to race, his eyes filled with fear.

And then, just like that, with the snap of the fingers, and ice broke and Mickey fell through. The cold water entering his system, he didn't even have time to take a breath before he went under.

Clifford watched from the top of the hill, intrigue filling his own eyes as he watched, not even stopping the stopwatch.

The air in his lungs began to leave him, and the last of a group of bubbles raced to the surface of the water.

Mickey thought that he was genuinely going to die here. He closed his eyes in preparation…

But death never came to meet him.

Erica pulled Mickey up to the surface of the ice, and she could tell that the tiniest bit of breath was still left in his lungs. Erica, on the other hand, had no sign of fear on her face. She looked almost calm.

Mickey felt her arms wrap around him, picking him up as she ran the rest of the way, ignoring any sign of cracks in the ice, which didn't seem to be any.

Reaching the other end, Mickey touched Emily's hand, and the loner began her own part of the course.

"You saved me again?" Mickey asked in astonishment. In response, Erica nodded. "Why wouldn't I? I saved you once, I'll save you again." Then she shrugged. "It was the right thing to do."

As the two finished their conversation, Emily had just nearly finished bouncing across each of the red rubber balls. She fell from mid-air onto the next platform, letting out a groan of pain. She tagged Daisy's ankle, and she ran off.

Looking down at the sharks in the container once she reached the top of the stairs, Daisy felt confident in her chances of completion. Putting her foot back, she suddenly leapt up into the air, the sharks watching from the water in hopes that Daisy would fail to grab the rope.

Time seemed to slow down as she jumped over the pit of sharks, Clifford leaning forward slightly from where he stood atop the hill.

Her hands wrapped around the rope, swinging herself forwards. One of the sharks leapt up out of the water, and if Daisy had been any taller, her feet would be missing.

Lurching her body forward, Daisy, couldn't quite reach the end of the course, and, thinking fast, she put the weight of her body back, letting her body drag herself and the rope backwards further. She continued this process several times until she found that she would be able to make the jump.

Swinging forward, Daisy's hands unlocked from the rope, sending her body into the air, and the sharks could only watch as their would-be-meal flew over them. Her feet collided with the edge of the platform, and she smiled confidently, jumping down onto the target.

"Four minutes, twenty-three seconds." Clifford counted on his stopwatch. He looked to Graves, who nodded in return, and repeated the number through the megaphone.

Clifford looked back towards the camera, stepping away from Graves. "With a time of four, twenty-three to beat, will the Claws lose the challenge for their second time, or will the Vipers lose their current winning streak? Or will the Phoenixies lose it altogether? Find out when we return on Total Drama Zenith."

Little did Clifford know, however, an entire different agenda was happening somewhere down south.

* * *

It was a miracle the news hadn't gotten their hands on McLean's death yet. Detective Corrow just hoped to keep it that way until he could find out what's-what for this case.

Three deaths. Three people were now dead. Of course, this could be one giant conspiracy, but with the likelihood of McLean's murder, added onto by this new 'season' who knows what's real anymore!? And Lord knows how Zenith is even being broadcasted.

People are sick. That's all that's left to it. Zenith was being broadcasted internationally, as far as he knew, anyway. Canada and United States were the obvious ones, but who knows how many other countries were broadcasting the same murderous show.

Either way, Chris McLean, Krystal, and Travis were all dead. The full names of the teens haven't been released yet by Clifford Lane, and who knows if he even will.

Every time Corrow brought up this whole Total Drama mishap he was almost always excused, or said that it wasn't his problem. Was that really what the world has come to? If someone is dying but it's not your problem you just leave them to die?

No, you help them.

The interrogation with Jonathan McGillis hadn't really gotten him anything he hadn't already known.

But he did have one lead.

The forensic sent him DNA fragments of the metal combat knife that McLean had been stabbed with. And what did those fragments lead to? A name, actually.

Owen Slater.

A construction architect. Currently working on a three-story building. And that's where he was. Right across the street, Corrow had watched a man in a black suit enter the construction site, and was given a white helmet to wear.

He stepped out of his car and locked the door, starting towards the construction site, he was stopped by the man at the front.

"Sir, this is a restricted area." The worker told him. Corrow sighed, reaching into his pocket and showed him his badge. "Detective John Corrow." He told him, stepping past the worker, and into the site.

The man he could only assume to be Owen Slater stepped onto a lift to the third floor. And, despite there only being three floors thus far, it was a tall building.

Corrow slid into the lift, just as one of the workers started it up to the designated floor. Corrow stepped closer to Slater.

"Owen Slater?" He asked inquisitively. Slater looked back at Corrow.

"Yes?"

"Detective John Corrow." Corrow replied, showing his badge for the second time in three minutes.

The lift reached its stop and the four men standing in the lift stepped out, one of them more uncomfortable than the others.

"You're the architect?" Corrow asked. Slater nodded, and Corrow took the time of brief silence between them to study his features.

He looked to be in his mid-thirties, nice black hair, handsome qualities, but other than that, he did look rather generic. Like he was the type of person one would walk past on the street without a thought.

"Checking if the building was coming along correctly." Slater told him, stopping at a table in front of a wall.

"Looks to be doing so just nicely." Corrow noted aloud. Slater smiled slightly at that. "I'm here because I got a call complaint."

"And they sent a detective?" A skeptical Slater asked.

'Damn! I knew that was a bad excuse!' Corrow thought. "This is New York, after all. You never know the crime that goes on in this city."

Slater shrugged. "Fair enough."

Corrow leaned against the table, crossing his arms. "Have you heard what happened to Chris McLean?" He asked.

Slater nodded, looking back at Corrow. "Yeah, I read it on the news. Someone killed him."

Corrow nodded, looking away slightly. "But, it's funny, y'know?" Slater looked back at the detective. "The news doesn't know about McLean's death."

Slater paused. He was played for a fool.

Quickly, Slater reached into the inside of his suit jacket and removed a GLOCK 19. Pointing the pistol at his chest, Corrow jumped out of the way as a bullet was fired.

Corrow removed his own pistol, this one a Smith and Wesson MP. He jabbed his pistol from around the corner and saw Slater making a run down the hallway and into where a door would be, down by the middle of the hall.

Corrow raised his pistol to eye level, ready to shoot anyone who had a weapon pointed in his direction. His heart was pounding, and it was almost caught in his heart when he spun around the same corner Slater did moments ago, his pistol at the ready.

Except no one was there.

It was a large room, a glass floor leading to what seemed to be a very decorative second floor, though it would be a very long drop. Support beams and wooden and metal bars were built out to support the construction of the third floor, and they seem yet to be removed. A rope was hanging down a large metal beam, as if it were a type of crane.

Corrow dropped his arms slightly, but was caught completely off guard when he felt Slater's arm wrap around his throat, his hand pressed against the back of his head. Using the reflection in the glass, he noticed Slater was missing his helmet. Corrow pushed his body backwards into the wall, slamming Slater's back against the concrete wall, and allowing himself to spin around.

He pointed his gun at Slater, but it was only quickly moved when Slater grabbed it in his hands, and slung his hand around Corrow's own body, swinging Corrow's back to Slater, allowing him to grab his left arm and keep him still.

Even through the struggle, Corrow fired his gun into the glass, shattering it. Following the gunshot, and out of complete surprise, Slater tripped on his own feet, sending both himself and Corrow onto the wooden platforms.

Separating their two bodies, Slater slammed hard against one of the wooden platforms as Corrow landed next to him, the metal bars breaking, dropping the wooden platform over, and dropping Corrow two feet down onto the next wooden platform.

Slater looked down back at Corrow, and struggled for his pistol, which luckily had landed next to him.

In response and with quick thinking, Corrow kicked the metal beam next to his leg, dropping the wooden platform that Slatter laid on, and letting him fall. Using his quick reflexes, he let his hands tighten around the rope that the basic crane-like device was swinging around, his own gun falling to another wooden platform.

Corrow noticed his pistol land where the glass had crashed down against, and stood to his feet, and jumped to the rope on the opposite end of Slater's own, in an attempt to slide down and retrieve his own pistol.

Swinging around, the crane-like beam slammed into the metal bars, collapsing the wooden platforms as it did so. Im it's process, Corrow and Slater found themselves slam into each other, the ropes tangling.

The bar swung down once more, and Slater let himself fall off onto another of the wooden platforms. Corrow, on the other hand, lost his grip in the midst of the chaos, and fell. Expecting himself to collide with the concrete ground, the tangled ropes tightened around his leg, keeping him all but four inches off the ground, and in front of his pistol.

Slater reached for his pistol, but the shaking of the metal beams lost its balance, sliding the pistol off the platform and onto another, yet much more sturdy platform.

Corrow gripped a loose part of the tangled rope, feeling himself slide across the ground, his finger tips ran across his pistol, and he tightened them, curling his hands.

Slater dropped himself down onto the wooden platform and grabbed ahold of his pistol. Quickly looking over the side of the platform, he had to take aim quickly as Corrow forced Slater into his own view, pulling himself up on the rope slightly, and he himself took aim.

But only one shot rang out.

* * *

Marisa felt herself flying as she reached her arms out, flying off the rope that swing her across the shark pit, she made contact with the target symbol.

"Two minutes, thirty-two seconds! New record!" Clifford announced, now down next to the three teams total.

"And, with a total of five minutes, fifteen seconds, Claws, you are sending someone to their death once more."

Instead of the usual expected groans, glares were casted towards both two specific individuals.

* * *

"So, who're you voting for?" Jace asked Jack in one of the rooms. Instead of answering, Jack simply shrugged.

"The more obvious choice."

"That being?" Jace asked, eyebrow raised.

"You know who." Jack replied.

In the room next over, Irina stared into the mirror, trying the best to ignore her twitching hand. But she couldn't help but look at it. She lost Nebiros. Or, that's what she thought, anyway.

She looked back up at the mirror, and what she saw was definitely frightful.

She saw herself in Nebiros' clothes in the mirror.

"Did you really think I was gone?" Nebiros asks through the mirror, a slight smile on his face.

Irina smiles, placing her hand on the mirror, Nebiros doing the same. "I'll always be with you, Irina."

* * *

The elimination cabin. It was the one place on the island the contestants did NOT want to see. The doors were locked, and the seven contestants sat on the couch in front of Clifford Lane and Graves. Brendan was outside, ready to wheel something in.

"Welcome, Claws. You lost again, and so you send someone to their well deserved death." Clifford smiled, eyeing each contestant with a growing passion for someone to die.

"You've all voted, but I know which one of you has met the end of your life." Clifford spoke once more, Graves handing him the marshmallow tray.

"The following people get to see the sun another day: Irina, Jack, Timothy, Jade, and Jace. That leaves you two, Jerome and Erica."

Jerome frowned, his face now filled with fear as Erica looked calm and collective.

"Erica, you could be dying because you saved Mickey and let the Phoenixes survive the elimination.

"And Jerome, you could be dying for being, well, just being you."

Jerome glared, staring determinedly at the marshmallow as Erica looked at Clifford, waiting for the results.

The marshmallow sailed through the air and landed in one contestant's lap, leaving the other absolutely shocked.

"Erica."

Erica let out a breath of relief she didn't realize she was holding as Jerome stood to his feet in complete shock and fear.

"What?" He asked quietly, completely shocked.

Jerome turned around to look at his teammates, yet the only one who really seemed to show an emotion of sorrow was Timothy.

Unbeknownst to him, Brendan and Harvey wheeled in the device of execution. Jerome turned around just in time to see the massive machine.

A wood chipper.

"No!" Jerome shouted, taking a step away from the wood chipper, and back towards his ex-teammates. He was suddenly shocked to find Graves' strong hands grip his arms, and force him forward.

"No! Please! I-I can be an intern! Please don't kill me! I don't wanna die!" Jerome screamed, as Brendan turned the wood chipper on.

The noble demon kicked at Graves' legs, but it did not effect. The gravedigger was much too strong for him.

Within ten, agonizing, seconds, Graves threw Jerome into what can be called, the demon's mouth, legs first.

Blood sprayed from out of the end of the chipper, and all Jerome could do was feel the horrific feeling of his bones being crushed beneath him.

This was the end if his life, and even if he didn't want to admit it, it was.

Pieces of bone fragments flew out of the chipper along with the long stream of blood. And just when Jerome thought he might be able to cheat the system, holding onto the edge of the chipper, he was wrong when Graves brought his leg up, and kicked him further into the demon's mouth.

Jerome's agonizing screams echoed throughout the room, and the only people that appeared to be watching the murder going on in front of them was Clifford and Graves.

Clifford walked to the mouth of the chipper, looking into Jerome's desperate eyes.

"End of the line, P.J." He smirked evilly, turning around and walking away as Jerome disappeared fully into the wood chipper, the spray of red brightening into an even darker red color, what was once Jerome's bones flew out with them, and finally, what could be assumed to be parts of brain that belonged to Jerome.

Brendan shut off the chipper, and him and Harvey began to wheel it out as Clifford opened the front door, stepping out to do the outro for the brutal episode.

"Three contestants are dead, and so will twenty others. Who is the next to die? There are a lot of good choices, so please, don't go away! The fun has only just begun!"


	4. Pirates of Paspinêw

**AN: Read the authors note at the end of the chapter, please! That is all! Onto the reviews!**

 **TheSaneSierra: Don't worry, I think we'll see plenty of the challenge in this episode! And thank you!  
**

 **AZW330: No, I don't think I'd do that...(I totally would) but not yet. So far, they're the only real friends on this island so far, but that may change. The Chris McLean murder mystery is taking yet another HUGE turn this episode, so you'll find out what that is. Thank you!**

 **TheGamingMonkey2002: Yup, and by the time I post this, you'd better make that four. I don't think you've really even seen the half of it getting intense yet, but we'll see...I'm glad you're liking a character that I haven't really gotten to developing much of yet, so that's good! Thank you!**

 **yeezynight14: RIP Jerome. I'll also let you know if I do need Krystal's backstory...also, I apologize for killing your character first, I'm still REALLY sorry about that.**

 **gracey-marie: Haha! Even though I know your joking, I'll just explain a bit. The moments between Erica and Mickey isn't honestly much of anything, except a very possible future friendship...anyway, despite me now showing you too much of the challenge, I'm glad you enjoyed it! Chloe and Timothy for LYFE!**

 **keyblademaster avenger: Sorry, man. At least you still have Emily in, so that's good, right? I'm still glad you enjoyed it, and thank you!**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: Thank you! Take all the time you need, my friend!**

 **Nicky Haugh: Thank you!**

* * *

Pirates of Paspinêw

The rain finally stopped after days on end. Clouds were still their regular gray color, but a fragment of the sun's light could be seen from the island view, peeking out at the ground below.

Clifford Lane was leaning on his umbrella, a sickening smirk plastered on his face. He seemed giddy about something, something that perhaps only he may know.

"Previously on Total Drama Zenith: A new buddying romance has been doomed to fail when Chloe and Timothy started a bondage. The teams were revealed the fate of the eliminated contestant, and their faces had been amusing.

"During the challenge, it was an obstacle built by a group of specified chosen interns, in which, no one died by its hands. Out of a fortune for others, the Carnivorous Claws completed the course with the longest time, and executed their chosen player.

"And, it was the semi-wooden Jerome to be tossed away, and when I say wooden, he would've hoped he was wood after that wood chipper chipped his body away. Now, tension will rise, especially for one unlucky victim today, but the only question is who? We'll all find out that question on this episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

One of the rooms of the large cabin was pitch black, and for good reasons. There were six people standing, only one of them aware of what was going to happen.

The light switch was flipped on, and one of the contestants covered their eyes at the sudden light.

Dylan stood in front of the other five, a very serious look on his face.

"Do I need to explain the reason for you being here?" He asked, speaking for the first time he asked each of the contestants to come to his room.

Among Dylan, the five other contestants included Daisy, Jade, Erica, Timothy, and Chloe.

"Perhaps a bit." Jade spoke up. Dylan rolled his eyes in annoyance, crossing his arms.

"We're getting off this fucking island, and I thought that you five would be the most deserving to escape this place."

"'Deserving'!" Daisy exclaimed. "Everyone here deserves a chance to get out of here!"

"But I only chose the people I know we could all trust. The less people means the less people know about this rebellion, which means the less chance Clifford has of shooting us down." Dylan explained.

"What about Mickey?" Erica asked, glaring at Dylan. Instead of responding, Dylan threw a blueprint paper over the table in front of them.

"I drew this last night. We'll use these map out our meetings, but before we get any further, I need to bring something up."

The other five looked at Dylan curiously. "We need an escape plan."

The five looked at Dylan, once again, curious.

"In four days there will be a helicopter shipment of food rations." The architect explained.

The others began to smile, but one of them wasn't so convinced. "How do you know this?" Daisy asked.

"Today is day four of Lane's killing game," his voice cracked, hint of remorse evident, "a helicopter delivered a shipment earlier today. It doesn't take a genius to figure out the shipment schedule with that information."

Daisy looked impressed, Erica smiled, a very relieved smile washed over Jade, and Timothy and Chloe smiled at each other.

"Meeting adjourned." Dylan told them, rolling up his blueprints and dropping them away in a drawer in his cabinet.

The six teens began downstairs where the teams were eating their respective breakfasts. Jace and Irina sat at the Claws' table, shaken at Jerome's death the night before.

None of the teams found it unusual for the contestants to enter all at once, as Kevin, Timothy, and Emily all entered at once the previous day.

When Daisy sat down at the Phoenixes table, Jewel slid over, a smirk on her face. "So, did you and Dylan get it on?" She asked. Daisy glared at her, a glare so intense that the the spectrum meme slid back over to her seat.

Across the way, at the Vipers table Kevin was keeping his head down, quietly eating his breakfast. Horror movies were always enjoyable for him to watch, but now that he was in a situation similar to one, it was anything but.

"I don't want anyone to die." Elsie mumbled, sadly looking at her breakfast.

"None of us do." Kevin quietly and shyly spoke.

Dylan sat down across from Eduardo. "None of the people here deserve to die, but for these next weeks it is survival of the fittest."

"'Survival of the fittest'?" Lizzy repeated, looking up at Dylan. "We aren't Romans! None of this should be happening right now!"

"I'm sure he didn't mean it like that." Alexei cut in.

Before an argument could completely break out, the door flung open and Clifford and Graves walked in.

"You know, you're all really lucky it isn't raining today." Clifford remarked, walking through the center of the room as several of the castmates glared at him.

"As you can probably tell," he began, motioning with his arm towards Brendan, who wheeled in a board. Three photos had already been stuck on, the first image of Krystal just moments before her own death in the electric chair.

The next photo was Travis, an image with blood pouring out of his head as he looked on pleadingly, just moments away before his own death.

Finally, the third and final picture was that of Jerome. This one, he was screaming in pure pain and terror, clinging to the side of the wood chipper, his legs already devoured by its mouth.

"Jerome is no longer with us." Clifford told them, looking at the photo with no remorse on his face whatsoever.

"I would like to introduce you all to someone." Clifford continued, looking back towards the contestants at the tables.

The door opened and another intern stepped in. He had dirty-blond hair and an average sized beard. His hair was nicely combed and brushed, possibly gelled. He was wearing a long black trench coat, so long that the end almost reached his feet. The interior of the coat was a bright, silvery-like red color. He was also wearing a black shirt with diagonal dark blue lines.

The intern was thin, and was the average height for a male. He wore tan slacks and red sneakers with a unique pattern on them. The moment they saw him step into the room, he was holding a silver colored tactical M911A1 pistol, the handle colored a bright red.

"This is my friend, Dandy." Clifford told them, smiling at the intern now known as Dandy.

"Don't get on his bad side, he has an itchy trigger-finger." Clifford warned, still with a smile on his face. "Now, how about we get to the challenge?"

* * *

The teams walked along a gravel path, Clifford leading the way as Dandy and Brendan held up the back in order to make sure no one did anything stupid.

Just like the day prior, Timothy and Chloe were standing around the back, but far enough so that Dandy or Brendan wouldn't harm them by any sort.

"So, um, your team voted off Jerome." Chloe awkwardly noticed, looking at Timothy, who nodded slightly.

"I didn't want to vote for anyone, but, it kinda just came down to the least positive person." Timothy replied guiltily, unable to bring his normal smile back to his face after the death of another person that he more-or-less caused.

"At least he's in a better place." Timothy said, his usual smile coming back to his face. Chloe smiled at him, noticing his normal look returning.

Chloe looked up at the sky, looking for any sign of U.F.O activity. She frowned at seeing that there was none, and let her camera fall back around her neck and shoulders.

Timothy frowned at Chloe's disappointment, and his mind's gears began to turn, thinking of a way to cheer her up sometime in the future.

The teams filed onto the beach, large rocks separating each of the three sections. In the center of each section was a type of ramp, where the wooden frame of what seemed to be giant pirate ships stood.

"Argh! Now this is my kind of treasure hunt!" Ted cheered, much to Daisy, Hunter, Emily, and Jewel's annoyance.

"Today's challenge won't be as easy as your other previous challenges," Clifford began, stopping in front of the teams. "This time, you are to build your own pirate ship, and sail out to a large rock, and turn around. The last team to do so, will be executing someone."

"But...those are only the frames of a ship?" Kevin quietly noticed, looking up at the frame of his team's ship.

Clifford tapped the side of his ear. "Would someone like to repeat what he said?" He asked, smirking slightly.

"Who are you, Chris?" Emily scoffed.

"The ships are only frames." Lizzy repeated for Kevin.

Clifford smiled, nodding. "Thank you," he politely told Lizzy. "And that would be correct, within the sand here are fake diamonds and jewels-"

"Yes?" Jewel asked, looking up at Clifford, who simply ignored her.

The malevolent host gestured towards gravel path, where Graves has made himself comfortable on a lawn chair in a small wooden booth.

"Cash them in, and retrieve what you need." Clifford told them. "Things you may want to purchase from Graves are the usual pirate accessories, such as maps, cannons, cannonballs, and gunpowder."

He suddenly frowned, and looked dead-serious at each team. "And do not try and escape. Remember that I have your addresses, and if you even pass that rock by fifty feet, I will not hesitate to terminate each of your entire families."

Clifford smirked again and shrugged. "Not like you'll be able to get far, anyway. You'll all drown before you get to the mainland."

A few of the contestants gulped at hearing that, namely Kevin, Mickey, and Roxie.

"Now, I believe you should start the challenge before it starts the usual storm up again." Clifford smiled, stepping past the teams and onto the gravel path. "You may begin!"

The teams broke into a full sprint, their hands reaching into a wooden barrel, pulling out metal shovels from the start of the sanded field. A good handful of the contestants seemed unsure where to dig, but the Vipers seemed much more confident than the other teams, seeing as how they had strength in numbers, having not lost a single challenge yet.

Eduardo sighed in annoyance, seeing how much physical activity will have to be put into this challenge. He looked over at Elsie, and winked at her, holding out his shovel, as if expecting it to take it from him.

Elsie frowned in confusion, looking away from Eduardo, and digging her shovel deep into sand of the Earth's crust in hopes to dig up a jewel or a piece of a diamond to trade in.

Eduardo scowled, letting his shovel drop to his side. Dylan shoved past him, his shoulder colliding with his own.

"Get to work, Eduardo." Dylan rolled his eyes, partially scanning the ground to locate a good area to dig.

Eduardo looked towards his right, spotting Alexei and Lizzy digging into the sand, though both of them talking to one another.

"So, you're into hiking?" Lizzy asked him, although not looking at him. Alexei hummed in response, nodding slightly.

"I can dig that." Lizzy responded, shifting her shovel slightly in the sand.

"I see what you did there." Alexei chuckled.

"Hm?" Lizzy looked up, realization dawning upon her. "Oh! That wasn't intentional!" Lizzy chuckled, glancing up at the smiling Alexei.

Chloe walked past them, and Alexei took the moment to notice the camera slung around her shoulder. "Hey Chloe! I just noticed your camera, are you into photography too?" He asked her.

Chloe glanced down at her camera, and looked back up at Alexei and shrugged. "Not really. I just take pictures of the U. ." She smiled, looking up at the sky, peacefully.

Alexei nodded, while Lizzy looked downright confused, her eyebrow raised. Chloe seemed to realize where she was, and walked away, keeping her head down low, dragging her shovel along the sand.

"She's weird." Lizzy murmured.

"Isn't weird good?" Alexei asked, looking back up at her. "If everyone was the same person it would get boring, wouldn't it?"

Lizzy looked down at the sand, standing to her feet. "I'd prefer everyone to be the same person, and not like some freaky conspiracy theorist." Lizzy scowled. Before Alexei could respond, she stormed off.

Alexei watched her storm off. "Must have had a bad experience with conspiracy theorists?" He wondered to himself.

A few yards away, Kevin watched as Marisa dug energetically into the sand, shovelling sand out into a pile in search of a piece of diamond or jewelry.

"Do you need any help with that?" Kevin shyly asked her. The tall redhead blogger looked up at Kevin with an smile on her face that didn't seem to match at all with her appearance.

"No, but thank you for asking." She replied, digging into the sand even further, and letting her hand go, letting her shovel standing straight up through the sand. Kevin nods slowly in return, beginning to turn around and walk away.

He jumped up in fear when Marisa suddenly snuck up behind him, yelping something into his ear. Scooting back, he looked up at her, albeit slightly fearfully.

Marisa giggled at the frightened boy, stepping back to allow him some space. "Couldn't help myself!" She giggled, the digging challenge completely fading from her mind.

Kevin drew in a breath, turning from Marisa and walking away. Marisa shrugged, glancing back at her shovel and resumed her digging.

Elsie's shovel slammed into the sand, feeling her shovel stop against something hard. She stopped, thinking for a moment that she struck a stone, before a smirk made its way onto her face.

She began to dig up the sand when she heard a crack. Elsie glanced down and dropped her shovel to the ground.

"Ouch! Cracked a nail!" She groaned, looking at her own nail as Dylan walked by, dragging his shovel through the sand. "Hurry up, Elsie!" He shouted.

"I don't see you doing anything!" A miffed Lizzy shouted before Elsie could do anything to retaliate towards Dylan.

Across the way, the Claws dug into the sand thoroughly. Jace and Jack dug into the sand, quietly talking to each other. "Was it really smart to kill Jerome?" Jace asked.

"What would be idiotic of someone with an ego with the size of his own IQ?" Jack replied, shifting his shovel slightly in the sand. Jace chuckled in response, smirking.

Jack looked up at his team, noticing that Timothy was digging, his body facing towards the Vipers, or more specifically, Dylan and Chloe. He let his eyes wander down to his hands, noticing a loose grip on his shovel as he dug, his left foot stepping towards the direction of Chloe and Dylan, and his right foot stepping towards between Jade and Erica, both of them standing in different areas.

A slight smile stretched across his face and he looked back towards Jace. "Something is up between them." He determined, nodding towards Timothy, Chloe, and Dylan, and quietly pointing towards Jade and Erica.

"What are you thinking?" Jace asked, digging his shovel deeper into the sand.

"Isn't it obvious? It's an alliance. But they aren't the only ones." Jack looked back over his shoulder at Daisy, who was digging fast and almost completely absentmindedly into the sand.

"And how do you know this?" A skeptical Jace asked, glancing at Daisy behind them.

Jack smirked once more. "The slightest of body movement can give away something, and I know how to locate these movements."

Jace gulped silently. He almost at once learned the mistake of trying to, in the future, backstab Jack and cause his own death.

"You, for instance, hide your true motives behind a mask," Jack quietly told him, "a backstabber, a liar, and a cheat." Jace could only stare in awe at Jack. He discovered all of that through body movements?

Erica had been completely oblivious to the whole of Jack's discovery. She looked to Jade, who seemed to have a nervous and unsure look across her face. "Something wrong?" She asked, eyebrow raised.

Jade looked back over at Erica and lowered her voice so that only the two of them could hear. "I was just thinking about everything with Dylan and the others." She told Erica.

"How're we gonna get off this island if Clifford says what he said...about our...families, I mean." Jade asked, nervously tapping her fingers along her shovel. Erica paused, realizing that Jade was indeed correct. How could they get off this godforsaken island alive?

The Claws heard an excited cheer come from none other than Timothy as he held a large diamond in his hand.

The ultra positive guy ran off to the booth Graves sat in, holding the diamond over his head as he ran.

"Hurry up! They just got ahead of us!" Daisy shouted at her team.

Irina was having a difficult time digging the diamonds or the jewels due to her still free hand. She felt unusual letting her hand out free. It still twitches constantly, making her entire use of that hand to be completely useless as she dug into the sand with her opposite and almost always free hand.

Once again, at the other end of the sanded field, the Phoenixes dug quickly into the sand, still, however, with not much of anything to trade in for the proper building supplies.

One of the youngest contestant on the team was digging through the sand in her normal pace, and not letting Daisy get to her by any means...but then again, it surely didn't help when someone who was dressed as a pirate and walking around, attempting to order people around, was doing it.

She did in fact notice Hunter attempt to sneak a piece or two of jewelry into his pocket, but he was stopped when he spotted her menacing glare coming in his direction. Hence why he was now getting pieces that they need to use to complete the pirate ship build.

Even with the people competing for their literal lives, Emily was astonished how many people still acted as mindless idiots, the list consisting of people like Ted, Hunter, and Jewel, just to start it off. And, of course, that is only consisting of her own team.

Speaking of Jewel, she dug up a small piece of diamond and grinned. Spinning around to look at Hunter, who was still cashing out the jewelry he found, she threw it at him with all she could, allowing it to soar through the air...before colliding with Hunter's back, and knocking him over. She cheered.

"Home run!"

Clifford walked past the camera, seemingly to clarify something. "You'd think I'd be crazy to allow them to dig up actual diamonds, correct? These so-called 'diamonds' are really the same weight as a basketball."

As if to prove his point, Hunter grabbed the unharmed 'diamond', and handed it to Graves, Clifford's explanation proving why the diamond hadn't cracked, and why it was so easy for Jewel to throw.

Roxie smiled, holding a diamond in her hand. "Yes!" She smiled, turning and running to the booth where Graves sat in, waiting for each team to cash in their diamonds and jewelry.

"Argh! Ye Captain Ted doesn't plan on goin' down with his ship today!" Ted cheered, taking an armful of jewelry and running to cash them in to Graves.

As the teams began to cash in their supplies even more, Clifford took this opportunity to look to the camera. "Assuming that this pathetic bonding and digging is not what anyone wants to see, I think it would only seem appropriate to let our break come here. One of these teams will be sending someone to their death, and, it's only a matter of time we find out who. So, stay tuned for when we return once more on Total Drama Zenith."

The show faded to black, but while it was off air temporarily, something had been happening somewhere down south...

* * *

Corrow was very lucky he was able to get the shot off at Slater the day prior. While it had been recommended he take a day off of this investigation, he simply can't.

Too many people were now dead. Chris McLean, a girl named Krystal, two boys named Travis, and Jerome, and now the man who used the knife, Owen Slater.

The forensic, Eric Fells, went over the death, piece by piece.

"You shot him." Fells concluded, pointing to the bullet hole, that had been almost comically placed, in the center of Slater's forehead.

"It was my only choice." Corrow responded, not sorry at all for the death of the psycho that was Owen Slater. Or...at least, he was definitely much better than Clifford Lane.

"Not that it is really my job, but...what did you find out about Slater?" Fells asked, looking to Corrow.

Corrow paused for a moment, silently debating if he should tell Fells anything about this case. In the end, he determined why he shouldn't.

"Nothing much." Corrow responded, looking away from Fells and leaning against the table. "His file didn't say anything about any past arrests, he paid his taxes, he had a well-paying job.

"The only thing that could really tick someone off was his visits to the darknet."

"The darknet?" Fells repeated. Corrow nodded.

Fells' face seemed to become pale white, stepping back from Corrow and taking a shallow breath. "Shit." He cursed.

"What?" Corrow asked, tilting his head slightly.

Fells ran his hand through his hair, looking directly at Corrow. "You need to drop the investigation!"

"What?"

"You heard me! You need to drop this investigation!"

"Why, Eric?"

"I'm asking you as a friend, that we'll all be completely fucked if you don't stop this investigation!"

"Dammit, Eric! What's going on!"

Fells took a step back towards the corner of the room, as if he could hardly breathe. Corrow leaped over the counter dividing the two, and suddenly felt his hands fly to his shoulders, holding him still as if he were worries he was going to faint, which, at this point, was very possible.

"Eric, what's wrong?" Corrow asked calmly, slowly letting Fells go.

The forensic took another shallow breath before looking Corrow in the eye.

"How can't you have figured it...oh God, John!"

"What! Eric, tell me for Christ's sake!"

Fells rubbed his eyes with his sleeves. "You killed a fucking hitman!"

Corrow really hadn't expected that at all. He took a step back in confusion and shock, letting what he just heard sink in.

"You shot a hitman for hire." Fells repeated, stepping back once more, pinning his own back against the wall.

"There is a lot more to any of this than we thought, John. Nothing is what it seems."

Corrow let Fells' words sink in as he left the lab, walking all the way to his desk. Any case that was offered to him, he refused, providing him the much needed time to look over Slater's personal history.

How was it that he was a hitman but had no sign of any form of crime on his record? None of that mattered now. What mattered was the reason Chris McLean was killed, and who hired Slater to do the job.

Wait, Jonathan McGillis told him something before he left. The new season that was on, Clifford Lane hijacked the show. Slater was a professional hitman that Lane hired. But why would he kill these kids for his own amusement? Surely people really couldn't be that fucked in the head, right?

But then it dawned upon him. Days before Chris McLean's murder occurred, there had been one major event that he had no idea how he missed: the arrest of arms dealer Damien Deveraux.

All the pieces were falling into place. Lane was indeed a true psycho, but the deaths of these kids was a win-win situation for him. It wasn't ONLY for his demented amusement...it was for a ransom.

"Oh shit." Corrow cursed, letting reality settle in.

Far to the west of where Corrow was sitting at his desk, Damien Deveraux was sitting in his chair at ADX Florence, which sat in the middle of the desert plains of Colorado, of the United States.

He wore the red prison uniform, almost just like anyone else in the prison. He looked a lot older than how old he actually was. He had black, thinning hair, which seemed to have been, for the most part, brushed over. His skin was quite pale, and he had dark rings around his eyes.

On the television screen hooked up to his room ceiling, he watched a good friend of his torture kids on live, and international television, and, if it wasn't clear before, it was really clear now that he was really getting a kick out of killing these teens.

Deveraux smiled. "I hope you're having a good time, Cliff."

* * *

The teams were on their respective pirate ships. Clifford walked past the camera with a giant smirk. "Hours have passed, and I am eager to say that...within the next six hours, someone will be dying!" He laughed.

Ted raised a wooden sword he got from Graves during a trade, and cut a rope in half, letting the Phoenixes start down their ramp, into the water.

"Onwards!" Timothy cheered from the Claws' ship, as Jace cut the rope in half, once again letting their ship set sail into the water.

Finally, the Vipers watched as the Claws began down their ramp, as Eduardo raised his own wooden sword. "I'll do the honors." He said, attempting a charming smile as he walked past Marisa and Lizzy, and swiped the rope in half.

The rope looped down the side of the ship, pulling a row of wooden beams, acting as dominos, free, and knocking the ship on its way down the ramp, and into the water.

"I say we fire the cannons! We can't be last, am I right, ladies?" Eduardo flirted, only to be countered by Dylan.

"No, you moron. We fire off those cannons, and we have no chance of winning this challenge." Dylan scowled, walking past him and across the deck of the ship.

"Well, we shall load them in case, then." Eduardo replied, walking alongside Dylan. Dylan sent him a skeptical glance. "Sure, load them, but don't fire them." He warned, walking off.

Eduardo smirked. "Who says I'll fire them?"

As Eduardo walked back to load the cannons, Chloe was leaning against the railing of the ship, looking down at the water below.

"What, is the government hiding an underwater city or something?" Lizzy asked, crossing her arms as she walked behind the theorist.

Chloe shook her head. "No, why? I don't see much of a reason for the government to hide an underwater city, and besides, millions of cities are underwater, anyway."

The drama queen stared at Chloe, perplexed with her latest answer.

"Why are you the way you are?" Lizzy glared, prompting Chloe to turn around to look at her. "What do you mean?"

"You're such a weirdo!" Lizzy raised her voice, prompting several of her teammates to look over at her.

Chloe sighed, looking away from Lizzy. "It's happening all over again." She murmured.

"What? Do you wanna say what? What's happening all over to you again?" Lizzy asked, pressing on.

Chloe refused to answer the drama queen. Why did this always happen to her? She was always bullied by these types of people, and she hated it. The only real friend she's ever had was Timothy.

She hadn't really ever had any friends before, actually. Nobody wanted to be friends with the 'weirdo conspiracy theorist'.

Her only friends were people that had the same beliefs as her, and typically online, somewhere on the internet. It was like her childhood was going to start all over again, except, this time she knew she wasn't going to survive.

"Come on, Lizzy, leave her alone." Alexei protested, curling his fists.

"No! I wanna know what this weirdo conspiracy theorist has to say." Lizzy argued, not taking her eye off Chloe's short form.

Chloe breathed shallowly, tilting her head slightly to look at Lizzy. "Why do you people hate me?" She asked quietly. "What have I done to upset you?"

"Because you people keep creating these idiotic theories about things that we already know the answer to!" Lizzy shouted, prompting an eye-roll from Dylan.

Chloe looked down at her feet, quietly glancing around to see if she could escape from Lizzy, or just the general public.

"And you think she's a freak because she actually knows that not everything is as it seems?" Dylan asked, leaning against the mast of the ship.

"Yeah." Lizzy bluntly said, crossing her arms. "Nobody's going to listen to people who are like this, we listen to the news for the most reliable source!"

"And the most twisted." Chloe added, looking up at Lizzy. "In the United States alone, the news is constantly telling the public the wrong information, or twisting it to the point where it isn't the same story anymore. But people still watch it because the government is brainwashing us-"

"Oh please! You expect anyone to believe this?" Lizzy scoffed.

Seeing no point in arguing any further, and, despite her short height, pushed herself past Lizzy and walked to the downstairs room, simply to be alone from anything that involved the act of breathing.

As the conspiracy theorist left the deck, most eyes remained on Lizzy, who seemed satisfied with her work.

Alexei's hands had curled around the wheel of the ship, staring at Lizzy from where he was standing.

"I thought that you were a really nice person, Lizzy. I'm not sure what to think anymore." Alexei told her, frowning.

"Yeah right, I probably did all of you a favor." Lizzy shrugged uncaringly, turning around to lean on the railing of the ship.

"They aren't firing." Jade told her team, holding a spyglass to her eye as she watched the Vipers ship load their cannons, but refuse to fire them off. "They must be preparing." She concluded, lowering her spyglass from her eye.

Timothy couldn't hear what had gone on between Lizzy and Chloe, but he did see Chloe walk to the lower deck of the ship. He frowned slightly, scratching the back of his neck.

"Should we also load the cannons for preparation?" Jace asked, looking up at Jack, who was holding the wheel to turn it whenever he saw necessary.

"I don't think they plan to fire at us, but then the Phoenixies might...load them." He only said the last part loudly enough for his team to hear, as he glanced back and saw the Claws right beside them, and sailing on.

Irina looked over the railing, into the water. It still felt so...different without Nebiros at her side. Her eyes grew wide, staring off at the water beneath her, she saw herself in Nebiros' clothing, once again, staring back up at her.

"Irina, I have a plan to win you this challenge." Nebiros told her, a smile on his face. He nodded towards the cannons, and Irina immediately caught on, looking at them. She looked back down at Nebiros, only to see her own reflection in his place.

"Ah, Nebiros. As wise as ever." Irina murmured.

There wasn't a point at shooting the other ships until they rounded around at the rock, somewhere in the water.

Jade stood at the bow of the ship, holding the spyglass to her eye as she looked out for the rock in the distance. She was startled suddenly when Erica walked next to her.

"Perhaps Dylan may have an idea?" Erica asked her. There didn't seem to be any thinking outside the box with this one.

"It's like fucking North Korea." Jade cursed, continuing to look out for the rock. "If we escape, our families die. Can Clifford really be that demented?" Jade asked, looking over at Erica slightly.

"It's possible. Cliff hasn't had a problem killing the other three, what's to say he doesn't have a problem with killing other people's families?" Erica asked. "I don't think there is a way out of this." Jade told the freerunner.

Jade was ready to break down in tears. "I don't wanna die! Please! I don't wanna die!" She said, choking on sobs as she lowered the spyglass from her eye.

Quickly, Erica enveloped Jade in a reassuring hug. "Jade, please, don't worry. We'll all get out of here."

The savant took a shaky breath, allowing Erica to let go of her as she put the spyglass back to her eye. "Thank you." She murmured. "I think I needed that."

"I've...I guess picked up some tips for stressful situations. Parkour does that to ya." Erica smirked. Jade chuckled quietly. Not that I would know, but...I hear that."

Taking a quick glance back at the rest of the team, Erica turned to Jade, lightly taking the spyglass from her. "You go back to the others, I'll be the watchout."

Jade nodded, clearly grateful for the freerunner, and walked down from the bow of the ship, heading back towards her teammates.

Erica lifted the spyglass to her eye, and kept a careful eye out for anything that was to come.

Timothy walked back from the edge of the ship, towards the mast. He looked up at Jack, who still had been steering the ship.

"You're doing a great job, Jack!" Timothy smiled, giving a thumbs-up to the polymath. Jack shifted his eyes down to Timothy, and then back up. "Thank you, Timothy." He said, although slightly annoyed.

Jace let the final cannonball roll into the cannon. He smirked, just the thought of the destruction of another team's hard work brought a smile to his face. But, it was safe to say he didn't enjoy his team, either.

Jack is a genius and a great detective. The guy can discover motives of another just through the use of their body language. It must have been complicated, but yet it was genius at the same time.

Jade is...too quiet for his liking. She doesn't talk too much, nearly keeping everything to herself as much as possible. It isn't a bad plan in a game like this, but seeing as how she is getting close to Erica, she may be too strong to be beaten later.

Irina either talks to herself, or her puppet that she used to have, and because that thing was destroyed, Irina is talking to herself more than ever. It's...quite annoying, actually. Jack probably already discovered it, but the longer she keeps herself secluded, the harder it'll be to exploit her weaknesses.

Timothy is much too friendly to everyone around him. He has already has some kind of friendship going on with that conspiracy theorist girl, who...probably won't last long. It would be a shame to see someone go, but if it means that Jace can further himself, then no problem, no problem at all.

Erica is a threat, plain and simple. The longer she stays in the game, the stronger she becomes as a player. Jack insisted Jerome's death at the last execution, but if they lost again, it would be Erica that would be sent away with whatever Clifford has in mind.

Speaking of Jerome, Jace's two dead teammates, Krystal and Jerome...it was really too bad, actually. They could've really made things interesting. Or, at least, Krystal could've. Like Jack said earlier, Jerome's ego is as large as his IQ...wait, would that mean Jack knows Jerome's IQ then?

* * *

Ted spun the wheel around in a circle, adjusting the sails of the ship to the wind. And Daisy was sick of everything Ted was doing, from the past, to the now.

He gave himself the order of becoming the 'captain' of the Phoenixes, instead of Daisy. She assumed that her other teammates were tired of someone who thought himself to be a pirate as the leader of their team, and it was safe to say that it was driving her crazy.

"Should we be loading the cannons?" Emily asked, leaning against the railing of the ship as she watched the Claws and Vipers behind them by hundreds of yards.

"Aye, it's already been taken care of." Ted told her from behind the wheel of the ship.

"It isn't that I don't trust you, but...I don't trust you." Hunter spoke, crossing his arms.

"Well, he has gotten us this far, hasn't he?" Roxie recalled from their first and third challenge.

"Aye!"

"You're kidding, right!?" Daisy exploded, glaring at Ted. "Ted! For the love of God just drop the whole pirate act already! It is getting on my last nerve!"

"And why would that be, lassie?" Ted asked, glaring back at Daisy.

"This isn't the 1700s anymore, Ted, pirates don't act like this!" She snarled, addressing to the pirate's clothes.

"This challenge, here, was designed for a pirate, such as myself, so I don't see why I should change what and who I am, ya hear?"

"Well, how about we call for a mutiny!?" Jewel suggested, only to be shut down entirely.

"No, we can't lose this lead because we decided to tie up the 'captain'." Daisy replied, using air quotes when she said the word 'captain'.

Silence enveloped the ship, minus the waves crashing against the lower levels of that same ship. It was Mickey who broke the silence.

"What's a mutiny?" The teenage child asked, though, instead of getting a response, he was met by Emily pointing something out.

"I see the rock!" She shouted to her teammates.

"Argh!" Ted nodded, spinning the wheel a full three-sixty degrees, and scraping the hull of their ship against the rock, lurching a group of the contestants to another side of the ship as Ted held onto the wheel, ignoring the rock tearing through the hull of the ship.

"What was that?" Jewel asked, standing to her feet.

"Captain Ted, here, hit the rock." Daisy answered, standing to her own feet, and casting a glare Ted's way as the ship maneuvered the rest of its way around the rock, and began its way back to shore.

Water splashed against Mickey's head, and he looked up into the sky. "It's starting to rain again." He told them in a warning.

Daisy raced to the back end of the ship, and watched as the Claws and Vipers looped around the rock, much faster than the way Ted did, shortening the distance between the three ships even more.

"You'd better fire those cannons!" Daisy shouted.

"No! We'd be better off without them!" Ted argued. "Also, because we can't fire the cannons backwards." Ted added.

"You're joking, right?" Daisy asked, narrowing her eyes at Ted.

Hunter unhooked the cannon nearest to him, and pushed it off the side of the ship, taking several wooden planks with it as it fell into the ocean.

"We can lose some of this cargo to reach the land faster!" Hunter told them, already starting to unhook another cannon.

From behind them, the Claws and Vipers started to open fire on the ship in front of them. They didn't know it yet, but the Phoenixies were already starting to sink from the giant hole in the side of the hull.

"Fire!" Jack shouted as Jace and Erica lit the fuse of two of the frontal cannons. On the ship beside them, Eduardo and Marisa did the same, opening fire on the Phoenixes.

The cannonballs annihilated the entire back of the ship, leaving yet another hole in where the captain's quarters would be.

Jack looked up at his ship's wheel, and looked back down at the ship ahead of him. He smirked, looking to Irina, who had been standing right below him. "Irina, take the wheel." He commanded her.

The creepy puppeteer ran up to the wheel as Jack disappeared to the cannon below. She herself gained an idea.

Jack pushed his way past Jace, and raised the cannon just a bit higher. He lit the fuse, and watched as the cannonball exploded from the chamber. It flew through the sky, and drilled through a section of the floor Ted had been standing on, taking the wheel with it as Ted quickly stepped to safety.

Their ship was slowing down, almost coming to a complete stop as the two ships began to pass them, side by side, their own ship sinking slowly. They didn't appear to know what to do, if anything at all.

Irina ran back down to the normal level, and adjusted the cannon she stood nearest to just enough, and lit the fuse. The cannonball exploded, launching itself into the air, heading right over the Phoenixes ship, and collided with the Viper's mast. The mast began to tilt, just the way Irina wanted it to, and it began to fall, crashing into the Phoenixes own ship, sticking the two ships to one.

The Claws looked at Irina strangely, though impressedly. They hadn't expected that at all from Irina, nor did they expect the grin plastered across her face.

Jack whipped his head back to where they were heading, and grew a minor panicked expression. "Irina! Get the wheel!"

Irina looked up at the sand in front of them, and, panicking, spun the ship a full one-eighty degrees, their ship turning, and the side of it skidding against the dry land, stopping inches in front of Clifford Lane's face. He looked up at the Claws in front of him, and smiled.

"Well done, Claws. Considering your horrible fault last challenge, you progressed nicely this time." He lifted his umbrella over his head, glancing up at the gray sky above him. He folded one hand behind his back as he walked into view of the other two ships.

Clifford held out his arm, letting Graves hand him a megaphone, which he quickly brought to his lips.

"Vipers, because your ship is not completely underwater, you are safe for yet another day. I can't say the same for the Phoenixes, on the other hand. You royally fucked this one up. I'll see you all later tonight."

There was no cheering. At the end of each challenge, all it meant for sure was that someone was no longer going to be apart of this world.

* * *

The Phoenixes sat on the nice couches, Graves locking the door behind the team's entry to the cabin. Clifford stood at the center of the room, leaning on his cane with one hand, and a tray of marshmallows in his other. Brendan, nor Harvey were seen in the room, but Dandy was behind the contestants.

"All of you have casted your votes and made your decisions." Clifford told them, handing off the marshmallow platter to Graves.

"The following people are safe, not only to compete, but to survive.

"Mickey."

Mickey caught his marshmallow, smiling...only slightly.

"Jewel."

Jewel let out a breath, catching her marshmallow.

"Roxie. Emily."

Roxie caught hers as Emily let hers fall to the ground.

"Hunter."

The kleptomaniac caught his marshmallow, smiling as he did, and relieved he wasn't going to die.

"That leaves Ted the pirate, and Daisy the girl scout." Clifford said, his malevolent smile returning onto his features.

He paused, letting the tension draw out even more as the two contestants left sat on the couches. Ted didn't look too nervous, as Daisy glared straight at the marshmallow. He didn't really care who died, personally, it was just always so fun to watch the life of these worthless humans drain from their face...from their eyes.

"Daisy."

Daisy coughed, smiling as she caught her marshmallow. She wasn't going to die today. But...she couldn't help but feel horrible about Ted. The last person who she personally watched die was beat to death with a baseball bat.

Ted stood up, his arm becoming interlaked with that of Dandy.

The back door opened, revealing Harvey and Brendan roll in some kind of rusted pike. It had a similar design to that of a noose, but a metal hook was where the rope would usually go.

"This is mutiny!" Ted screamed, stepping on Dandy's foot, causing the trigger-finger psycho to loosen his grip on the pirate.

He tried to pull himself free, only to find Graves' hands wrap around his throat, but not enough to choke him or put him into unconsciousness, just enough that they could move him.

The pirate kicked at Dandy, though it didn't do much to any damage to him, as Graves pulled him towards the murder device.

"This is mutiny! This is not the last you've seen of Captain Ted!" Ted shouted.

Clifford smirked at Ted's persistence, seeming brave, but he saw, very clearly, the fear in his eyes.

Stepping behind the device, Graves raised Ted's body as Dandy held his waist still. The two smiled evilly at each other, and Graves dropped Ted's body, Dandy doing the same.

The hook caught the back of Ted's head, digging through his neck, and, covered in blood, shoved out of his mouth. It sounded as if he was trying to scream in pain as blood filled his mouth, and dripped onto the carpet below.

None of the contestants could believe what they just saw. Ted's body went limp. Just like that. All the color in his face was gone in an instant. His eyes began to stare into nothing, now for all of eternity.

Graves unlocked the door, and the contestants rushed out to avoid looking at Ted's lifeless corpse.

Dandy burst out to maniacal laughter. "That was so much fun!" Dandy laughed, already messing with Ted's body.

"Good, you can do the rest from now on." Graves replied.

A smirk fell upon Dandy's face. "Gladly."

Clifford stepped out of the cabin, and looked at the camera.

"How fitting? The pirate dies in the challenge designed for people like him. It's almost ironic. Well, he is dead, and tension is rising. Who will be the next one to die? We'll find out soon next time on Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

Chloe flicked off her reading light, placing her bookmark in her book and began to sleep, already starting to feel sick about whoever it was that died that night.

That feeling was gone, rather quickly, when she looked out the window and saw two flashing lights in the forest behind the two-story cabin. Chloe sat up in her bed and reached for her camera, beginning to take pictures.

The lights flew up into the sky, and disappeared into the night. Chloe couldn't stop smiling as she took her eyes away from her camera, and looked down at it, flipping through the pictures she had taken.

She lay back down in bed, a big smile on her face.

Outside, Timothy had been waving around two flashlights around the forest, setting both of them on a timer before he threw them as high as he could into the air, both lights turning off as soon as they reached their arch.

His only hope was to have made Chloe's day...or night. And it worked! This place is already filled with horribles, a few bright spots would be very needed, especially in Clifford's twisted game.

* * *

 **AN: Alright! Another one down! I apologize to anyone that enjoyed the character that was killed, but sometmes, that's just the way the world works, y'know? Anyway, I still need some character backgrounds, but I don't really feel I need them TOO much, now that I think about it. Also, feel free to send in challenge ideas for the teams! I still need two ideas, other than that, the elimination order is set! Unprofessional, I know. What? So sue me!**


	5. The Hexahedron

**AN: Well, I gotta apologize for the shorter chapter, considering how long it took me to get out, and I have no excuses. I got myself hooked on Assassin's Creed and Far Cry 5, my fault entirely. Anyway, this chapter was inspired off of a movie I watched recently, and I did Google everything necessary before jumping in, and you'll probably know what that means by the end of the chapter. Also, if you see similarities to the movie, feel free to add it somewhere into your review, just because: why not?**

 **Nicky Haugh: Thank you!**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: Ted was a fun guy to write, and it was a shame to see him go. I'm glad you are enjoying some characters more and more, so that's good! Corrow will be doing his best, trust me. Clifford is evil on so many different levels, and he would go extreme lengths just to do what he finds amusing, no need to say that, as I know that you know that...whatever, anyway, for your criticisms, I can only say that everything will come to make sense, sooner or later...oh yeah, when you do say strategizing before an execution, that will be taking place, but seeing as how we are now only five episodes in, not to throw any shade, but I wanna get the bland-ish characters out before anything else. Thank you!**

 **ShadowJcreed: Jack is a sneaky sonuvabitch, and you are right when you say Jace can protect himself, but here is the question: how long can he do it for?**

 **TheGamingMonkey2002: Hey! No enjoying! This isn't a romance story! Just kidding, I enjoy writing those two together, it kinda lights this dark place up even when all the horribles going on. Like...Gucci Mane LaFlare said, he would've gotten annoying quick, so I had to pick him off eventually, which does suck.**

 **AZW330: Every kind of thing like this needs a rebellion, am I right? I'm glad you enjoy the interactions between Chloe and Timothy, two friends (maybe something more than friends)! Timothy is a really fun character to write, and I'm glad you submitted him! Also, thank you for the idea! I may use that, or something similar.**

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare: Exactly! Sorry all Ted lovers out there! I like that you're enjoying the conflict between Lizzy and Chloe, it kinda just goes to show you how much stress one person can handle before they lash out at somebody.**

* * *

The Hexahedron

In the regular world, it was a day almost like any other. But for twenty individuals, their lives are a living hell on Paspinêw Island.

And just like the days before, the rain had picked up, and was coming down hard.

As per usual, Clifford Lane held his umbrella over his head, standing on the dock and his almost usual malevolent smirk upon his face.

"Previously on Total Drama Zenith: the victims were forced to put together the old pirate ships, and set sail several miles out from the island. After digging up the simple and usual treasure, the ships were indeed built, and it became a race for survival.

"Lizzy showed Chloe that she will never be more than a theorist. Irina began to lose her mind. And Daisy and Ted fought for control. Quite ironically, the Phoenixes lost the challenge, and executed Captain Ted, who, quite literally turned into Captain Hook.

"Twenty unfortunate souls remain alive, but by the end if the day, only one of them will no longer be breathing. After all, this is, Total Drama Zenith!"

* * *

Morning came peacefully for Clifford that morning. He hadn't even thought of being bothered by the daily deaths of these minors.

The one and only source of the communication of the outside world was in the sadist's hand, held up to his ear, speaking two, yet important words to the receiving end.

"Your move." Lane flipped the phone over, and placed it back along onto the desk part that the old-fashioned phone used.

Unplugging the phone from the wall, Clifford softly let the phone into his metal safe behind his portrait of what seemed to be a knight's battle in the 1100 to 1300s. He locked the safe, and shut the door, ensuring that no one would get in, and the victims won't be able to call for help.

Every precaution was made for the broadcasting of this show. Whenever Clifford had to make a demand on the phone, either Brendan or Graves set up a jammer in order to stop the outside world from locating Paspinêw Island.

The door opened, and Dandy stepped in, his hands politely folded behind his back, and a part of his long coat flying behind him as he took a step.

"The contestants have been placed." Dandy told him with a sickening grin. Clifford glanced back over his shoulder, and stepped back to face the trigger-happy intern.

"Excellent, Dandy. Today...will be a fun day to watch."

"That's disappointing, I was hoping to end one of their lives myself." Dandy frowned in disappointment.

A smirk crept onto Clifford's face. "Who's to say that you won't?" He asked.

Dandy broke into a psychotic fit of laughter as Clifford's smile grew even wider.

* * *

Kevin groaned, wearily and tiredly opening his eyes. He sat up completely straight, glancing over the room he and his teammates were in.

He couldn't help but notice white glowing panels on the floor, a black outlining around each of the square panels.

Standing cautiously up to his feet, he quickly tapped Marisa with his foot, nudging her softly, yet worried about startling her when she did awake.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Dylan stand to his feet, his eyes scanning around the room. "The hell…?" He asked out loud, turning to look all over the box room.

Marisa's eyes shot open, her hands almost automatically reaching for Kevin's ankle. The shy boy looked down at her, just in time to feel her pull his foot, and sending him to the floor.

The loud impact sound, echoing throughout the room was just enough for Chloe's eyes to blink open, and look around the room. She quickly stood up to her feet, keeping her arms close to herself, hugging herself.

Kevin quietly stood up, avoiding all possible eye-contact with Marisa as he did so.

In the corner of the room, Alexei had his hand over the wall, gliding himself up the smooth white panel curiously.

The commotion within the room allowed Lizzy and Eduardo to wake from their separate slumberings, and both looked about the room.

"Now what?" Lizzy grumbled irritably, crossing her arms.

"One of Clifford's sick games." Dylan replied simply and cynically, leaning against the wall next to Alexei, lifting his foot to give himself leverage.

Elsie rubbed her head as she sat up on the floor, looking around the room. "Where are we?" She asked nervously.

"A box or something." Alexei answered, stepping away from the wall.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." Dylan muttered, rolling his eyes.

Alexei frowned, looking back towards Dylan, then turning back to his team. As he turned back, he noticed one of the white panels on the wall was slightly darker color, a bit gray, actually.

On the ceiling, the floor, and the other walls, a gray-like panel was there, and how Alexei hadn't noticed was beyond him.

* * *

Somewhere else in this maze from Hell itself, the Phoenixes were looking around the room they were in themselves, and who knows how far they are from the Vipers.

"I'm scared." Mickey blurted, hugging himself as his team looked in confusion at the room around them.

Seeing Mickey's fear, Roxie enveloped him in a hug. "You'll be fine. I promise." She told him, and he returned the favor.

Jewel sputtered out a series of either gibberish, or something spoken at a really quick pace.

"Sorry?" Hunter asked, voicing almost everyone's question as he strapped on a watch to his wrist, a watch that used to belong to Brendan.

The team heard the moving of electronic parts, and turned to see that Daisy had pressed her hand onto the gray panel, and opened a small tube into another room, one identical to that of the one they we're currently in.

Hopping down, she walked, seemingly calmly, to the next gray panel, and opened it simply by pressing her hand to it.

It looked identical to the room they were in, yet again.

Daisy shut the gray panel, and turned to the team. "If I had to guess, it looks like some kind of maze." She told them.

"If that wasn't obvious enough already." Emily muttered under her breath, but just loud enough for Daisy to hear.

Daisy shot Emily a harsh glare, before turning her attention back to her team.

"We may not know Clifford that well, but why would he lock us in a place like this?" Daisy asked them.

"What makes you think this is Clifford?" Hunter raised an eyebrow, to which Daisy scoffed in return.

"You're kidding, right? Who else could this be?"

Hunter opened his mouth to retaliate, but then closed in seeing that he was fighting a losing battle, and for no reason.

"Well, I have no problem being stuck in a room with you guys." Jewel smiled, staring towards Emily's chest, making the loner feel more uncomfortable then she already was.

"Do you know which way we should go?" Mickey asked the girl scout, clinging to Roxie's arms in terror.

"I have a good idea where." Daisy replied, tapping a badge on her breast pocket. "I didn't get my wilderness survival badge for nothing."

* * *

The Claws were looking into one of the six doors implanted into the walls of the box they were stuck in.

"What do you mean you can't decipher it?" Jace asked Jack on the opposite side of the room as Jade, Timothy, Irina, and Erica were trying theories with these rooms.

"Human emotion is different from things mechanical." Jack answered, glancing slightly back at the door in which his teammates were.

"These rooms are identical, but for what reason!?" The polymath asked himself, curling his hand into a fist and hitting the side of his head.

"Is there a reason you two are talking behind our backs?" Irina calmly asked, looking back at her two teammates, holding her hand due to the constant twitching.

Erica, Jade, and Timothy looked back at Jack and Jace, letting the gray panel close behind them as they looked at them.

"She's right." Jade noticed. "Why have you two not contributed to the team recently...and how close you became so quickly after the last challenge."

Jack scowled, scanning over his teammates. "I see, and I see no point but to admit it. I know that you, Erica, Jade, Timothy, you're all in some kind of alliance."

Irina's eyes widened and looked at her three teammates.

"What?" Jade was astonished by Jack's observation.

"What makes you think that?" Erica coolly asked, crossing her arms.

The polymath couldn't help but let out a laugh.

"Your body language!" He answered, shaking his head in pure amusement.

Erica nodded slowly, successfully keeping herself calm.

Before anyone could say anything else, a loudspeaker went off, or something similar in order to hear Clifford's voice.

"Welcome to your next challenge, victims! Today, let's see how many of you are going to survive in this maze. And when I say survive, I do mean that, unlike the pathetic host before me.

"Traps have been installed into specific rooms of this maze, and they WILL kill you. The first team to reach the exit point of the maze, wins the challenge, and mat decide themselves which of the other two teams will be sent to execute someone. So, good luck. You'll definitely need it."

The evil voice that was Clifford Lane's echoed out, and left the contestants to their own devices.

Irina stepped back from the group, leaning against the wall, she rubbed her head, and heard the voice of Nebiros.

Irina once again saw Nebiros, this time standing in front of her, disappearing and reappearing as if he was a glitch in a computer system.

"Irina, they are going to eliminate us." Nebiros told her, raising his hand to signal Irina to lower her own voice to avoid her teammates from looking over.

"I know it. They are planning to get rid of us, the alliance, and Jack and Jace, you can't trust them!"

"You're absolutely right, Nebrios. I never should trust anyone here." Irina looked down at the ground, only to feel Nebiros' tilt her head up, his hand on her chin.

"I will always be there for you, Irina. I won't let them do anything to us."

The world in Irina's vision began to vibrate and shake, as if it were an earthquake. The puppeteer fell to the ground, losing her balance, and when she looked up at the world around her, Nebiros was gone, and everything was back to normal.

Her teammates had their eyebrows raised, looking at the girl in front of her.

Jade noticed the awkward looks coming Irina's way, and spoke up.

"Don't we have more important things to do than pay attention to someone who tripped?"

* * *

Dylan's hand pressed against the gray panel on the floor, opening it.

He, Kevin, and Elsie looked in, all of them having a worried part of them questioning on how they will survive.

Alexei stood close to the wall, pulling a button from his red plaid shirt, and scraping the letter 'A' on the wall.

Looking over, Dylan raised an eyebrow. "What're you doing?"

"In case we go in a circle, we know which way to not go." Alexei replied simply, taking a step away.

"Seems that you're a good navigator." Lizzy smiled, pointing out. Alexei shrugged in response, but smiled back at her.

"Thank you."

If you're good with directions," Dylan started, standing up from the floor, "then why don't you find out which room is safe."

Alexei's small grin faltered slightly. "I'm not really that kind of navigator-"

"Hey, you brought this up." Dylan interrupted. "So, get to work."

"Wait!" Marisa cut in, much to Alexei's relief.

"Why don't we all take turns?" She suggested, a small smile forming on her face.

"Turns?" Eduardo spoke for the first time since he found himself in this box. "Are you insane!?"

"Fine." Dylan shrugged uncaringly. "Alexei first, then Eduardo," Eduardo glanced back over at Dylan, shocked at what he was even saying.

"Then Elsie, Lizzy, you, Chloe, Kevin, and me last." Dylan finished, looking across the room, as if daring for someone to object.

Lizzy muttered under her breath, "Of course you'd go last."

"How do we know a room is safe?" Chloe brought up the question on most of everyone's mind.

Dylan scoffed in response, laughing slightly. "That's the easy part."

Reaching down, the architect untied his shoe, holding it by the lace. "We drop it in, and see if the trap activates."

"That's...not a bad plan." Elsie nodded, crossing her arms in partial satisfactory.

"I don't like it. Why don't the expendables go first?" Eduardo suggested, jabbing a thumb in Chloe's direction.

Heads turned towards Eduardo, most of them in shock at the suggestion. However, one hand did shoot up in agreement.

"I second that motion." Lizzy scowled at Chloe, who dropped her head in sorrow.

Dylan couldn't help but giggle. "Isn't that what the order already was?"

* * *

In another part of this giant box, the Phoenixes had already developed a plan to get through the maze.

Seeing no point in having an otherwise useless device on her any longer in this sick game, Roxie tossed her phone into the room next over, and effectively not setting off a trap.

Breathing a sigh of relief, the pharmacist climbed out of the tube into the next room, her teammates already beginning to follow her lead.

Emily scanned over the room she was in, as seeing as to how many of her teammates were crowding the exit door. Or, at least, the door into the next room.

"How isn't there anything?" She mumbled, looking out for any possible sign that would probably tell the trapped rooms from the safe ones.

"What is it with you?" Emily heard, spinning around to come face to face with Daisy.

"You're thinking about something."

Emily pushed past the girl scout. "What I think about is my and my business alone." She retaliated. "Besides, shouldn't you be trying to find a way out of this place?"

Daisy rolled her eyes in annoyance, walking back towards the door, and crawled through after Mickey.

Emily took a small breath, taking one last look around the room, before muttering to herself. "Keep them on their toes."

"You know who's looking good? You." She heard Jewel tell to one of her teammates as she crawled through the small tube-like bridge, and Emily couldn't help but groan, knowing that it was going to be a long, and horrible day ahead.

* * *

"Acid." Jade confirmed, looking through the tube-like bridge, peering into the next room over. Like the Vipers, they came up with the same plan of tossing in a shoe to see if a trap would be activated, or if it was safe.

And when she tossed the shoe in, hoses emerged from the walls, and fired acid, and melted a good majority of the shoe.

"It isn't safe." Jade looked back towards her teammates, a few of them further away from each other due to the tight enclosed space.

"Try another door." Jack sighed after a pause, turning away from his team.

Irina pulled her cresent hairpin out of her hair, and scraped the number '1' on the wall.

"What's that?" Jace asked, questioningly.

"In case we go in a circle, we know which room is safe." Irina replied.

"In the UNlikely case." Jack added, opening another door.

Timothy grinned, patting Irina on the back. "Good idea, Irina!"

Erica looked back towards the room the acid sprayed down from. "We don't know where we're going, so wouldn't it be a better plan to move in one direction until we get to the end?"

"It's a maze, Erica." Jack shot back, gesturing for Jade to toss what was left of the acidic shoe into the room. "Not a hallway."

Jack took the shoe from Jade, and tossed it into the next room over, partially expecting a trap to be activated.

He was wrong, and, after a very long pause, he and Jade determined that the room was safe.

"Safe." Jack confirmed, pulling the shoe back using the lace that was still intact, and handed it back to Jade.

Erica rolled her eyes in annoyance, her and the others approaching the door as Jack dropped himself into the next room, and Jade getting ready to crawl through the tube-like bridge.

They stopped suddenly when the gray door shut violently, and almost took Jade's hand from her body. Out of surprise, the savant fell backwards, landing on her own back and staring up at the door in fear.

On the other side, Jack looked back at the shut door, and reached out, pressing his hand against it in a futile attempt to open it.

Within seconds, some kind of machinery came out of the wall, covering the gray door, and the doors around the room.

The polymath stepped into the middle of the room, had he found the way out this easily?

The devices covering the door began to fold out quickly, and it seemed to be a type of megaphone, or something similar to shape.

Jack crossed his arms. "Mr. Lane, come on, I knew your challenge was too easy, you couldn't kill somebody without a proper execution first, anyway."

A sharp, high-pitched noise suddenly came from the speakers across the room, and Jack's hands flew up to his ears, as he screamed in pure pain.

Then, within seconds of the high-pitched sound intensifying, Jack's entirety of his head, exploded, his blood splattering against the walls and floor, his brain matter flying in every direction.

Just like that, another person was dead.

Just like that, another person was gone from the game.

The speakers folded back into itself, and slid back into the walls, ceiling, and floor.

Finally, the gray door opened, and the Claws were absolutely horrified at what remained of Jack's body.

"Jesus Christ." Erica swallowed, not even her parkour and freerunning had her prepared for whatever this was.

Jace himself swallowed back vomit, forcing himself to look away.

Timothy almost fainted, turning around and already trying to get that image out of his head.

The door shut, and Jade stepped down, her eyes closed at what she just saw on the other side. "Infrasound." She mumbled.

After what seemed like an hour, even though it had only been minutes, Irina had to say. "Sometimes the most illogical ideas are the wisest decisions." She vocalized, turning her head to Erica.

The contestants began to move, heading towards the room that was trapped acidicly, though one of them wasn't paying attention in the coming conversation.

Timothy was too worried about someone on the other team.

* * *

Chloe felt sick as she and her team entered yet another room, and Alexei scribbled the letter 'A' on the wall, yet again.

"Elsie, your next." Dylan nodded towards the girl, who was much more nervous now that, considering, Eduardo set off a trap in one of the last rooms they were in. Of course, they were all still alive, and the trap was only lethal if someone took too long to get to the next room.

With everyone still on their team, and no executions, it was an honest miracle that everyone got out of that room alive.

Elsie pressed her hand against the door, opening it, and threw in Dylan's shoe.

After a pause Elsie turned back to her teammates. "Clear." She said, smiling in relief.

The beauty guru entered the room first, muttering something about her boyfriend for the upteenth time that day as she climbed down into the next room over.

"Um, Dylan?" A shy quiet voice inquired, and prompted said architect to gaze back at who the voice belonged to: Kevin.

He hummed an answer, as if telling him to 'go on'. Kevin looked down at his feet, failing to make eye-contact with the older teen.

Despite Dylan all but telling him to go ahead, he wasn't sure if he should say anything...but if he was correct, he could be saving a life.

"Um...what if the traps also detect us with heat signatures." He inquired. Dylan gave Kevin a puzzled look. Feeling more confident, Kevin raised his voice a bit.

"Wouldn't that make sense when the room Eduardo was in didn't go off until all of us were in?" Kevin asked, his voice lowering back into its shy state.

Eduardo stopped climbing into the room at hearing what he heard, and, almost on cue, Elsie's scream was heard. Eduardo spun his head into looking back into the other room, just in time to see a terrified Elsie push past him, and back into safety.

The beauty guru took a shaky breath, pushing herself off of Eduardo, her eyes glancing around frantically and in an absolute terrified state.

Dylan shifted his head back towards Kevin, who too had watched what they had just seen happen in front of them.

"Well fuck me sideways." The architect cursed, as Alexei and Lizzy helped Elsie back to her feet, and Alexei attempting to calm her down.

In another corner of what could be considered a prison, Chloe had her hand on her camera, flipping through the images she took just the night before. The two lights flying up into the sky, it had made her so happy to see that it was very possible that she wasn't as crazy as people thought.

The theorist noticed her eyes beginning to water, and tears began to slide down her cheeks. All hope she had of escaping with her life from this island had evaporated over the past five days. Only one person here seemed to really care about her, and he was truly the person who deserved to survive.

"Timothy." She quietly said to herself, her voice cracking and breaking the name of her friend, and her only friend.

Before her teammates noticed something was wrong with her, she wiped her tears away onto her sleeve, and dropped her head against the paneled wall.

Taking a shaky breath, a wave of determination came of her, and she wanted to make sure that she got out of this place alive. And so that she saw Timothy again.

* * *

Detective John Corrow cursed, reading over the list of inmates from within ADX Florence. And Damien Devereux was definitely there for good reasons.

Homicide, arms dealing, human trafficking, and insider trading. Some of the worst crimes imaginable, and soon, Clifford Lane will be joining him in that godforsaken prison.

Corrow has already determined that he will not stop until Lane get what he deserves, and it is only getting worse for him.

Another person was dead on that island, and who knows where on Earth it actually is. Even if Lane is caught, he'll be getting the death sentence, something that Corrow never thought the worst type of people should get.

Death is just a cowards way out, and Lord knows Lane deserves something deserving, a rightful spot in prison for the rest of his fucked up life.

Just being a detective, Corrow had to know: is the government even doing anything about this? Or are they just letting all of this happen?

This guy is intelligent, and so far, he has remained completely untraceable to the outside world. If anything, the only way anyone would know what is going on is through the television network playing this horror.

And shutting it down from the viewing eye is another story altogether. Corrow never liked the logistics of it, but plain and simple, they really can't shut it down.

Corrow folded a folder in front of him, leaning back in his chair as he stared forward at nothing, deep in thought.

What could he do? It isn't like he is able to just head over to Colorado. He is a New York detective, that isn't how it works.

How did it all start as the murder of a television host, that led to this giant conspiracy?

Either way, he already determined one thing: the only thing that will stop him from solving this case is his own death.

* * *

"We're being followed, Irina." Nebiros whispered.

Completely separated from her team by standing in the corner as the others talked amongst themselves about the next room.

"I can feel it, Irina." Nebiros added, circling around the puppet master.

"By the other team?" Irina whispered, to which Nebiros nodded.

"I can't see which, but I know it. I know that we are being followed. We need to lure them away."

"How?"

Nebiros glanced over his shoulder at the room they had just emerged from. A trapped room, actually. It was activated by sound, and the trap itself were spikes to emerge from the walls, floor, and ceiling.

Irina nodded to Nebiros. "As wise as ever, Nebiros."

Letting Nebiros fade from her vision once again, Irina pressed her foot into the footholds, and pressed her hand against the door, opening it.

The sound of the door opening echoed through the room, and Irina's teammates couldn't help but look towards her, and watched as she took her cresent hairpin out of her hair, and quietly scraped the number '11' on the wall, making sure not to make any noise.

Quickly, Irina ducked back away from the door, allowing it to shut, and placed her hairpin in her hair once again.

"What was that?" Jade asked, raising an eyebrow.

Irina glanced back at Jade, pinning her hairpin back into the correct place. "In case we're being followed."

Letting her answer sink in, Jade shrugged, nodding, before turning back to the door at hand.

Once all eyes were off her, Irina her head back over her shoulder, seeing Nebiros smiling.

"Excellent, Irina. We both know you made the right decision."

The creepy puppet master paused, and nodded. Nebiros was right. Besides, when had he ever been wrong?

* * *

"Clear." Hunter told his team, noticing the number '10' scraped on the wall.

"Good. Emily, you're next." Daisy nodded, before turning her attention to the unpredictable loner, who just shrugged in response.

The team clambered through the small tunnel, filing out into the next room.

"Good plan, Daisy." Roxie complemented as she climbed into the room. "But, won't we have to find the team and get ahead of them?"

"So? Why is that a problem?" Daisy questioned, looking back at Roxie as Emily walked to each door and opened them.

Roxie stuttered, failing to respond, and stopped when they noticed Emily open another door, and begin to crawl through without a second word.

The Phoenixes began to approach the door, and Daisy climbed up into the tunnel as Emily jumped down onto the ground.

Seconds after Emily reached the floor, the team became frightened at the sound of an ear-piercing scream.

Emily had stepped onto the ground, thus making sound, and turning the sound-activated trap, active.

A spike sprung out of the wall, shredding through Emily's knee.

Thinking quickly, Daisy reached for the loner's shoulders, and pulled her arms back, freeing Emily from the spike, and pulling her back into safety.

Just as Daisy's deed went through, the inactivated spikes went off, practically engulfing the room in what would've been Emily's corpse.

Blood spilt onto the ground beneath her as she groaned in pure pain.

"We need to stop the bleeding." Daisy told her team, pressing her hand on Emily's knee. Hunter, being a kleptomaniac, handed Daisy a small rag, allowing the girl scout to quickly tie it around Emily's damaged knee.

"I don't wanna keep going." Mickey swallowed, pressing himself against the wall, before sliding down.

Luckily, saving Mickey from Daisy's wrath, an intercom went off.

"The Carnivorous Claws have won! The rest of you, sit tight."

"Sit tight?" Jewel asked. Her question was answered when she felt something pierce her neck. Just as basic human reaction, her hand flew up to touch whatever it was, and found some kind of small dart.

"That's...so clichè…" She mumbled, just before fainting.

* * *

One by one, the remaining contestants found themselves wake up in the dining hall, all of them on their team's respective bench.

Leaning on his umbrella, the rain storming down outside, Clifford waited patiently until each contestant was properly awake.

Graves entered the room alongside Dandy, Brendan, and Harvey. It was almost pitch black outside. How long could they have possibly been out?

"Congratulations to our winners, the Carnivorous Claws, in today's challenge."

"You are evil!" Jace spat, eyeing Clifford with a new-found hatred.

Clifford just shrugged. "You can think whatever it is you want to think." He responded, looking towards the two losing teams now.

"Claws, it is your decision as to which team faces execution."

Jace glanced over at the Vipers, seeing that they had the most players.

"Easy. The Vi-"

"Phoenixes." Timothy interrupted.

"What?" Jace questioned, looking back at Timothy with a disbelieving look.

"Done." Clifford smirked darkly, nodding towards Dandy and Brendan, both of them already forcing the Phoenixes out of their seats.

Daisy shot Timothy a harsh glare, setting off with the interns, Graves, and her own team.

Timothy swallowed, he looked past Jade's shoulder, looking at Chloe, and smiled, knowing that she was also safe. The theorist smiled back, both in relief and in knowing for a fact that they would see each other again.

* * *

Rather than the lodge, like one were to expect, the Phoenixes sat in lawn chairs behind the building, and an open grave, about six feet deep in front of them.

Clifford held his umbrella over his head, as Graves held the platter in his hand, but keeping it from the rain, under the umbrella.

"You have all decided on who lives, and who dies. Knowing that, as per usual, it was you, all of you, who decided the person dying tonight. But, one of those people is not Mickey."

Graves flung the marshmallow into Mickey's lap, letting him let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Roxie."

The pharmacist made no effort to catch her marshmallow, and smiled slightly, only for it to disappear once realizing the serious problem.

"Hunter."

Hunter caught his marshmallow, and quickly noticed a suspicious look being cast his way by Brendan.

"And Daisy."

Daisy cocked her head, raising her hand and catching her marshmallow.

"And, that leaves Jewel and Emily. But, the one not dying today is…"

Clifford trailed off, letting the tension sink in.

Jewel scraped her lawn chair desperately with her nails, hoping that she was the one this marshmallow would go to.

Emily sighed in annoyance. Was she going to die now because her knee was injured? That is truly fucked up.

"Emily."

The marshmallow flew through the air, and landed in Emily's lap. Jewel bit her lip. "Fucking shit."

"Jewel Moore, your time is up." Clifford smirked.

Thinking quickly, Jewel stood to her feet and prepared to make a mad dash for an escape from Clifford and his sick game, she felt Dandy's hands wrap around her shoulder.

"No! Please! I-I can be an intern! I can tell you baseball facts! Please don't kill me!" Jewel screamed.

Dandy, a deadly smirk on his face, forced Jewel from his arms, and into the open grave. He stepped away briefly, grabbing onto the side of a large vase-like object.

"Hey Jewel, I hear you like spiders."

Her scream was almost earth shattering.

Dandy tipped the vase, and out came hundreds of spiders, caterpillars, and many other insects.

Clifford and Dandy watched with interest as the insects entered Jewel's system through his ears, only raising her screaming by another level.

Blood dripped down her nose and eyes, feeling some kind of gnawing at the back of her eyeballs.

Her blood continued to pour down through her mouth, as the spiders and caterpillars began biting at her flesh, some of the spiders injecting a lethal venom into her system.

Finally, and suddenly, the screaming came to a stop, as Jewel became unmoving.

"What kind of spiders are those!?" Hunter shouted.

"The dangerous kind." Dandy answered, watching in fascination as the small insects continued to eat at Jewel's corpse.

Clifford walked off, and began the outro as the contestants were forced to sit and watch until otherwise.

"Two down, a lot more to go. Who's going to die next? We'll all find out soon, on another episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

 **AN: Well, there ya guys go! Again, sorry for the long wait, and also, send me an idea for a challenge, I seriously only got one idea, and it would be nice to get a few more, even feel free to send in an idea or two for a merge challenge, because why not? I'll be looking forward to your ideas!**


	6. A Road Too Steep

**AN: Well...This episode didn't turn out like how I wanted it to at all...this one is by far my least favorite of the series, and to all those reading this, this one is more of a filler episode for plots and all that, because...ah, you'll see...**

 **ShadowJcreed: Thank you! That's all I can really say, but yeah! Thank you!**

 **TheGamingMonkey2002: RIP Jewel...You can send me the challenge anyway, I don't really care, I'm open to all of those challenge ideas!**

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare: It is unfortunate, RIP.**

 **AZW330: Well, maybe we'll see Chloe and Timothy grow even closer, I dunno...I have no comment on that second part, just read and find out! I like the idea, maybe I'll use that! I'm glad you're enjoying the story, but I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't enjoy this one as much, I promise the next one to be MUCH better!**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: Yeah, I'll be honest here, Jack was never actually gonna be a real big bad villain, but more of a red herring, but we will be seeing a main antagonist from a cast member very soon, if you don't already know who it is...I'm glad you're enjoying the story, but I do apologize for Jewel's sudden...well, ending.**

 **keyblademaster avenger: Thank you! And don't worry, the answer to your question lies in this chapter...**

 **Flashlight237: Done and doner!**

 **prestoncampbell2001: We will see for most of those questions, but the one I can really answer is this: Clifford won't so much as smile when he IS defeated, it only matters on the when that does happen.**

 **TheSaneSierra: I hear that, and that really does suck! I'm glad you didn't get caught, so that's good!**

 **TheAllTimeGreatest: Don't worry about it! Clifford's games will probably only get more sick from here on out...minus this one, but whatever. Haha, you're funny. Notice the period...Like I said to Thor, Jack was never gonna be the main antagonist of this story, and not even a secondary, but more as a...red herring type of thing. Goodbye Jack, you probably won't be missed, but goodbye.**

* * *

A Road Too Steep

The cameras flickered to life, showing the dreadful island to the viewing world. The rain had still not stopped, and thunder and lightning struck almost at once.

Clifford Lane held his umbrella over his head, and very ready to do the usual recap.

"On the previous episode of Total Drama Zenith, the victims were placed into a life or death predicament, far more dangerous than usual. A maze created of my own design.

"The pressure of the situation seemed to be piling up on some of the victims, and one of them being Lizzy in particular. And one cause of drama revealed an alliance to his teammates…

"Well, right before his ego blew up in his face. Unfortunately, Emily had survived from the trap in one of the rooms, and had only left it with a issue with her knee.

"In the end, the Claws won, and sent the Phoenixes to execution, and they finished off the perv that was Jewel. Now, I'm bringing back the oldest high-school game in the book, but to find out who dies from it, you'll just have to watch this episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

The dead bodies will never cease to disgust or horrify any of the contestants on Paspinêw Island, all of them fighting for their life.

How Clifford had yet to be caught was beyond them, every single one of them.

And it wasn't just Clifford, either. It ranged to the interns, and even Graves.

Brendan is probably the quietest of the trio of interns. Nobody really seemed to know much of anything about him, but he appeared to be quite the intelligent individual.

Harvey had practically vanished for the past few days. None of the contestants have seen a sign of him, but even then, some of them could determine that he was the most light-hearted one of the group, despite his strange qualities.

And then, there was Dandy. He is a complete psycho, with no respect for human life. He takes a joy in killing them, and his dementedism is very nearly rivaled by Clifford himself.

Little people part of the cast thought about these things. The situation they were all in was so fucked as it was.

What choice was it that brought them to this place? Was it chance or destiny?

Or was it neither? Maybe some of them just fucked themselves up too much, a definite possibility.

A better question: who could be so demented to enjoy watching these minors die, and then broadcasting it on international television.

And no one could do anything about it!

Was the government even doing anything about this? Or were they just turning a blind eye like Chloe thought was a genuine possibility.

The night itself was peaceful, for the most part. Despite everything currently going on in this place, the night was the most peaceful of the day.

Even so with all the rain that was coming down, that never actually seemed to reach an end.

The kleptomaniac that was Hunter felt absolutely terrified at watching the death of Jewel just before he went to bed.

It was absolutely disgusting. How anyone could do this to someone was beyond him.

As Hunter's thoughts circulated around his head, he was ripped from them when he felt four hands grip his legs and arms together, and then a bag slip over his head, blocking his vision.

He tried to scream, but they were prepared for it. One of their hands slammed over his mouth, only muffling his screams, and making them go unheard.

It felt like an eternity that he couldn't see, but then, the bag was taken off his head, his vision trying to make itself used to that of the dark room.

He could make out the shape of five people.

Hunter tried to lift his hand, but he gave up when he discovered that he had been chained to a chair.

His vision began to clean itself up from the darkness, and who he saw was Clifford, Dandy, Brendan, Graves, and someone he hadn't seen before.

Brendan was the first to approach, never taking his eye off his wrist.

The intern lowered his head down to Hunter's, and slowly moved his hand to his wrist, slowly unbuckling the watch from his wrist.

Hunter's heart hammered in his chest, his eyes beginning to look around the room frantically, his eyes landing on a table, where a projector was waiting to be activated.

Brendan took a step back, allowing Clifford to speak.

"Hunter, we don't tolerate punishment here." He told him, but with a smile tugging at the edge of his lips.

Hunter glanced over at his wrist. Was this all just for Brendan's watch?

Clifford gestured towards the younger man next to him. He had nicely combed, red hair. Was thin, much like his associates, but didn't seem to be very muscular, if at all.

He was wearing a black suit outfit, a white undershirt, and a crimson red tie.

He had a form of a blank stare on his face, and didn't seem to be interested in Clifford, Graves, or the interns.

"This, is Jerome St. Clarence," Clifford started, leaning on his umbrella as he turned his head towards Hunter.

"And he's gonna drive you mad."

Clifford couldn't keep his enjoyment in any longer, giggling slightly as he, Graves, Brendan, and Dandy left the room behind, leaving St. Clarence and Hunter alone.

St. Clarence brought his hand up, showing a pendulum clock in his hand, but wasn't ticking.

"What you are about to hear next," He started, pressing a button on the projector, and showing the image of a police car.

"Is a very bad sound."

Shifting his hand, St. Clarence allowed the ticking of the pendulum to go ahead, turning the projector off again, as Hunter jolted in his seat.

St. Clarence tilted his head in fascination as Hunter let out a scream of terror, fear, and hopelessness.

* * *

It was a mostly quiet breakfast.

Nobody said a word as their teammates sat down at the tables.

Timothy failed to notice a suspicious look being cast his way by Jace. He was trying to figure him out, but with all of that optimism, it only makes it more difficult.

Emily took a notice towards Hunter. She raised an eyebrow, at noticing that he was absolutely much more miserable than what he would normally be after an execution.

Or were him and Jewel quite close?

It was an intriguing question, but a question that Emily still wanted to know. Is she were to get out of here alive, she is going to have to stay one step ahead of the game.

"Good morning." Clifford calmly stated as he entered the room through the front door, leaning slightly in his umbrella.

Glares were casted his way in return, but he paid it no mind.

"Because of the stupidity within one of your teams during the last challenge, and killing one other person, shall we allow the drama to be kicked up a notch?"

"What does that mean?" Elsie questioned.

Clifford glanced back at her. "I mean that your teams are now dissolved."

Eyebrows shot up, and others were much more nervous. Chloe and Timothy looked over at each other, a wave of fear and nervousness sweeped over both of them.

"You're merging the teams already?" Dylan asked, shocked at the revelation.

"Ah, but I didn't say that, did I?" Clifford smirked, folding one hand behind his back.

"From now on, the teams shall be even. I'm not merging the teams, but I am merging the Claws and Phoenixes...into one." Lane brought his hands together at the end of his sentence.

"I don't see how that's fair!" Lizzy argued, standing up.

"And I don't see why you're complaining, seeing as how your team has yet to lose." Clifford shot back, eyeing the Vipers.

He turned his head back towards the Claws and Phoenixes. "But...the teams would be lopsided, so, shall we have Timothy join the Vipers?"

Timothy's eyes rose in surprise, turning his head over his shoulder to look at the Vipers, and seeing Chloe smile slightly, a small blush in her cheeks.

"And the rest of you are now one. The Carnivorous Phoenixes, if you will."

The said two teams looked over at each other, and then back at Clifford.

"Now, shall we get on to your next challenge?" Lane asked, a smile creeping onto his face.

* * *

The graveyard was much larger than the castmates actually thought.

They already had one challenge based there, but this one did look terrifying, in the very certain ways.

"Today's challenge was a childhood favorite of mine." Clifford stated, walking back and forth between the two lined up teams, a small gap between them, indicating where one team ended, and another began.

"Today is a game of Capture the Flag. But, I think I would advise you all to be careful. This is a graveyard, after all.

"Just like the regular rules, one patch of the graveyard will be a jail. And, the only way to do that is to grab someone's arm, standing on your side. You must grab them, otherwise, what's the fun in that?

"It only makes it all more exciting when you and death look into each other's eyes."

It was impossible to find Clifford's game.

Some challenges are absolutely terrifying, and others are these childhood games.

Each of these contestants were scared in more than one way, but it was just human nature to not let it ever show.

Or maybe it was a strategy to find weak points in someone before they die…

Either way, it was fucked. It was sickening that only one of the people that Clifford was using for his own entertainment, would get out alive.

But how do they know Clifford would keep his word?

Well, there was a simple answer to every question, and although nobody wanted to face the truth, they already knew it: they didn't.

* * *

The Vipers were forced to follow Harvey to the place where they had been forced to make a base at.

The fog had dissipated from the graveyard much earlier in the season, and so it was easier to spot the flag: what they could presume was their logo on a green flag, stood up on a pole, but only slightly.

"I don't like it." Lizzy held her ground, looking at her new teammate. "He was on the other team, how are we supposed to trust him?"

"You're kidding, right?" Dylan glanced back at her. "I hope you're just saying this for the sake of it, because that doesn't make sense."

"Why? We don't know who he is!" Lizzy defended, crossing her arms.

"Fine." Dylan scowled, stopping in his tracks and turning around to face the rest of his team. "If he backstabs us, we can kill him."

Chloe and Timothy shared nervous glances.

"That's hardly humane!" Alexei shouted.

"Yeah, well," Dylan turned around and continued on his way, "it's them or us."

Lizzy smiled in satisfaction. Although none could personally tell, the stress of this horrible game was already getting to her.

Silence consumed the group. If they were to be honest with themselves, making friends in a place like this was the last thing someone should do.

However, that didn't stop Timothy and Chloe from hanging back at the end of the group, and whispering to each other.

"You look pleased." Chloe noted with a slight smile, looking up at the taller boy.

Timothy's grin grew wide. "We're together now!" He whispered.

Chloe covered her mouth with her sleeve. "And it's wonderful." She quietly said to herself. Clearing her throat, she moved her sleeve from her mouth. "Why didn't you chose my team yesterday?"

It was a question that took Timothy by surprise. "You're my friend." He whispered.

"Timothy…" Chloe trailed off after a brief pause, stumbling a bit on her own words. "I don't know…the other people here deserve to live more than me...I'm just a weight!"

"No you aren't!" Timothy countered. "What makes you say that about yourself?"

"I've always gotten the same thing said to me over and over, but why are you so much different?"

"You gotta focus on the positives, not the negatives." Timothy placed his hand on Chloe's shoulder, and it made her heart race.

The short girl looked down at the ground, her hands on her camera as she ran her fingers along it.

"Can I ask you something, Timothy?" She murmured, glancing up at the taller boy. In response, he gave a reassuring smile and nodded.

Chloe beamed. "Well, I was thinking last night...do you think the United States government is in on what Clifford is doing to us? I was thinking that this is some kind of overpopulation solution. Say I'm superstitious, Timothy, but what if this is what I think it is?"

He let her words sink in. He couldn't help but notice that she had a point, and a good one. What if she was correct? That Total Drama Zenith was one of many solutions towards overpopulation?

"I...I uh, I think you might be right, Chloe." Timothy turned to her. Chloe breathed heavily inwards, one of her own personal signs of absolute fear.

* * *

The new whole team of the Phoenixes looked over the one area that they were supposed to guard. One flag was stood up in the center of the 'base'. It was red, with an image of a phoenix on it, not very creative nor was it interesting.

"We need a plan." Daisy ordered her team and placed her hand on the flag pole, wrapping her fingers around it.

"Frankly, I'd prefer to not to take orders from someone not on my team." Jace scowled.

Daisy rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Either you follow orders, or Dandy puts a bullet between your eyes tonight." Daisy countered, standing up straight and crossing her arms.

Irina let the argument between Daisy and Jace fade from her mind, and turning her head to notice Nebiros leaning on one of the gravestones.

Glancing back at her new team, Irina slowly stalked over to the grave.

"There are more of them, Irina. We can't trust them."

"I didn't intend to."

Nebiros nodded approvingly. "They will just throw us under the bus as soon as they can."

Irina looked at her feet, placing her hand on the gravestone.

"I'm aware they will, Nebiros. People would do anything to survive."

Nebiros placed his thumb on Irina's chin, tilting her head up to look at him.

"I promise to you that we will survive this place. I will do what I can to keep us alive."

"Thank you, Nebiros."

The only person to take into account of Irina disconnecting herself from the rest of the group was that of Emily. The loner lifted her hand to her head, moving a bang from her face to get a more clear view of Irina.

She tilted her head curiously, and her mind began working to form a plan.

Even through the heavy rain coming down, the only 'island officials' in the view of the contestants was Harvey, Brendan, and Graves.

Over on the Vipers, it was Kevin who took notice of this and spoke to Dylan.

"Why aren't Clifford and the new intern not here?" The sweetheart asked quietly, hoping for Dylan to respond quickly.

"Probably jerking each other off, I don't care." Dylan answered uncaringly, looking out for where the other team would be.

However, in all actuality, Clifford and Dandy were inside the host cabin, and the sadist using a phone as Dandy hooked up a sophisticated-looking device to it.

"Obviously, you've seen the show, so, one of these kids will die at the end of the day."

On the other end of the line, a hardly spoken man in a heavy American accent responded after a short pause.

"We don't negotiate with terrorists."

Lane sighed. "Right, I seemed to have forgotten that your country doesn't care for anyone but themselves. Now, as I've said before, my demands are very simple: the release of Damien Devereux, and the full access to a nuclear device."

"Like hell!"

"Indeed, 'like hell'. But, that is why I do this, because I know that seeing is believing, and I do want you to believe me, so…"

With that, Clifford hung up the phone and disconnected it from the outlet, handing it back over to Dandy to lock in the safe.

Locking the safe, Dandy gazed back at Clifford. "A nuclear device?"

Clifford hummed in reply. "It is the first rule of show business to have an excessive flare for the dramatic." He pointed out, a dark smile forming onto his features.

Dandy nodded, stepping away from the safe. "Your inner Chris is showing." He snickered.

Clifford frowned. "Oh, you're a funny guy." With very swift movements, Clifford reached into his coat pocket and produced his Ruger SR1911, and fired.

Dandy's head shot backwards, the life draining from his eyes as he fell the floor in a pool of his own blood, already spilling out of his wound.

The door slammed open and Brendan stepped in, holding his own pistol at arms length, and pointed at Clifford's head for a brief second. Quickly, he lowered it as his eyes wondered to Dandy's deceased body.

"W-why did you shoot him?" Brendan stuttered out of shock, forcing himself to look back at Clifford.

Ignoring Brendan's question entirely, the sadist bent down and reached his hand into Dandy's coat pocket.

Brendan fit his pistol back in his holster as he looked at what Clifford was doing.

Slowly, his hand began to move from the coat pocket, his hand folded around something. He showed Brendan the object, to which his eyes widened in response, the feeling in his legs going numb.

"Interpol." Clifford noted, running his thumb over the badge.

 **Dandy Veillux - The Double Agent**

There was a long moment of silence as Clifford stood to his feet, looking over the badge in his hand. Brendan cleared his throat.

"How did you know?"

"His personality." Clifford answered, pinching the badge between his thumb and index finger. "He looked to be...trying too hard to fit in with the rest of us."

Brendan offered his hand out, and Clifford dropped the badge into it.

"But this is a better question: how did they find us?"

The sadist observed Brendan for a moment. "I want a thorough check on each and everyone on this island."

Brendan nodded, and began to leave the room.

"Oh! And Brendan?"

The introvert stopped in his tracks, and glanced back over his shoulder.

"Make sure to clean up this mess, would you?"

* * *

John Corrow had a flight ready to Los Angeles, California. However, he wouldn't be flying in for a few days.

As the date neared, Corrow still had made no sign of stopping the investigation. Too many people are dead as it is.

Truthfully, Corrow had absolutely no intent of stopping this investigation, not until he caught the man that was really behind it, who, let's face it: is Clifford Lane.

That isn't concrete, but considering McLean's murder and this show turning into some kind of mass terrorist attack, the true murderer and the televised sadist must be the same person.

Corrow hadn't actually left his house yet. He had been up all night looking for a lead, but every sign just seemed to lead to a dead end, or dry up somewhere along the way.

Opening his front door and about to set off to the station was when he noticed a newspaper on his front porch.

Now, usually, Corrow would take the paper and toss it away in the recycling. The news always got the facts wrong as it was. But this time, he had a gut feeling.

Standing up straight, the detective began to unfold the newspaper, and what he saw on the front page made his stomach churn.

The headline read: "TV Producer, Jonathan McGillis Dead".

He felt unable to correctly balance himself on his own two feet, stumbling against the brick wall beside his door as his eyes scanned the front page.

Why hadn't he heard about this until now?

'Fuck it!' He thought to himself, tossing the newspaper to the ground. 'If no one is doing anything about this, then I guess I'm the only person that can.'

* * *

The previous day, a call had come through to make demands with the United States government, in Washington, D.C.

"Good morning, President." Lane's voice echoed throughout the room. "I'd like to make my demands."

One of the officials began to speak, only to be promptly stopped by President Arthur Floyd.

"Go ahead, Mr. Lane."

"Ah, so you know my name. Good. My one and only demand is simple: release Damien Devereux from prison, or I keep killing these teens."

Floyd bit his lip. "Mr. Lane, I'm sure we'll be able to compromise?"

"Oh, so you higher-ups just keep twiddling your thumbs, let me tell you something, President. You only have one job to save the rest of these kids, or are you just going to sit around and do nothing because of high prices?

"Your move."

The call ended there, and the line went dead.

"He only wants Damien Devereux free? Jesus Christ, just do it!" One of the officials, Samantha Bishop, insisted, slamming her pointer finger on the table.

Floyd looked at her with astonished features. He wore spectacles, and now he slowly removed them. He appeared to be in his mid-forties, his dirty-blond hair graying at the sides. He seemed to be well in shape, unlike other officials at the table.

Bishop, however, had an hourglass frame with brown hair. She appeared to be the youngest one in the room, and just a little younger than Floyd. In fact, everyone in the room was wearing a black or gray suit with an American flag pin.

"We shouldn't give up one of the most dangerous prisoners in the country just so this guy will bring an even bigger terrorist attack on our country."

"So we just let these kids die?" Bishop questioned, sitting back in her chair and crossing her arms.

Floyd took his eyes off of Bishop's form, shifting them to the head of the CIA, sitting at another end of the room. Miranda Corbin.

Corbin was a bit more plump then the others in the room, with short black hair.

"Corbin, I want you to find them. I don't care how you do it, I just want you to do it."

Rather than responding, Corbin nodded as the room let their minds replay back to that of what Clifford Lane was doing on that island...

* * *

The challenge had been going on for at least fifteen minutes, and little to no progress had been made on capturing either team's flag.

Clifford had come down to check out the event only few times as Brendan took Harvey elsewhere.

But, at the end of the day, it had been truly fascinating...the Vipers lost their first challenge.

"Congratulations, Phoenixes. Vipers, I'll see you for your own first personal elimination of the season." Clifford smirked, his right hand folded behind his back, and his left holding his umbrella above his head.

As per usual, nobody cheered. Just a sense of dread overcame, just as usual.

* * *

Dylan flicked on his room's light, and looked towards the small rebellion that he formed.

"Tomorrow, the helicopter comes in. It may well be our only chance of escape. For all of us." The architect reminded them, gesturing towards the window with a shoulder shrug.

"Call me crazy, but hitching a helicopter ride does sound fun." Erica cracked a small smile.

"But what about the warning towards our families?" Jade recalled, glancing from Erica to Dylan.

"What Clifford says and does are two different things." Came the answer.

"I don't think I'm willing to take that risk." Daisy argued sternly.

"Not my problem." Dylan responded coolly. "So, either," he stepped closer to the group, "you're either in, or your out."

Downstairs, Eduardo sat down at a table next to Elsie, who had been eating her own dinner by herself.

However, before he could make his usual advances, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Peering up at the girl, he watched as Emily sat down next to him.

"I've been noticing something, and you're the only one I think I can trust."

Eduardo grew a big smile. "Then you came to the right person, señorita."

"Glad to hear it. I have...noticed someone on your team in some kind of alliance, or a friendship, on my team."

Eduardo frowned. "I see...who is this traitor?"

Emily paused, as if debating something in her head. Finally, she leaned down and whispered a female name into Eduardo's ear.

* * *

It was time for the now infamous execution.

The Vipers filed into the room and sat down on the comfortated couches. As they entered one by one, a wave a fear and nervousness washed over each and every one of them.

In the center of the room, Brendan stood by a closed basket. The team felt far more nervous when they heard Graves lock the door behind them.

Clifford held up a tray of marshmallows, looking over each piece.

"Only one of you here have truly been to one of these eliminations, so I'd like to tell all of you how this is going to occur."

Harvey entered the room, wheeling in a large board with five images, sticking to the board. In order, it was the image of Krystal, then Travis, Jerome…

An image none of them had seen before was Ted with a hook sticking through his mouth, blood filling up and only slightly spilling out.

The image next over was that of Jack, but just his body lying on the ground, and a pool of blood, remains of skull, and brain matter where his head once was.

And finally, an absolutely disgusting image of Jewel, caterpillars and all, one bursting through her right eye.

"These marshmallows quite literally represent life, and one of you will be dying tonight…"

Graves took the platter from Clifford's hand, allowing the host to lean more onto his umbrella. He grabbed hold of one of the marshmallows, and prepared to throw it.

"Alexei."

"Eduardo."

"Timothy."

Each name was spoken one at a time, and each marshmallow flying through the air into their laps. Each of them had similar reactions of absolute relief when their names had been called, but almost none of them made a move for the marshmallow, except Eduardo.

"Kevin."

"Marisa."

"Lizzy."

"Dylan."

Elsie's heart dropped into pure terror, as Chloe's breathing picked up.

Clifford couldn't help but smile as he held the final marshmallow between his fingers, and ready to throw it either to the beauty guru, or to the conspiracy theorist.

Lane waved his hand, and the marshmallow sailed through the air, into Chloe's lap. In response, the theorist's heart almost stopped beating, a wave of relief hitting her, and yet, a wave of guilt for Elsie's soon demise.

"Elsie, your time, is up." Clifford stepped aside, letting Graves pull Elsie up from the couch and towards the basket.

"Oh God! Oh fuck!" Elsie screamed, reality finally settling into the girl. Every sign that was the girl people watched online, was completely gone.

Graves stepped away from the basket as Brendan swiftly removed the lid.

Elsie faced her team, her makeup ruined by the tears running down her face.

"How could you?"

A Boa-constrictor jumped out of the basket, wrapping itself around Elsie's neck. Her hands flew up to the snake, and attempted to claw at it, forgetting the complexion of her nails, but only for the snake to squeeze her tighter.

As breath left Elsie's lungs, Clifford opened a cabinet and produced a shotgun, with a single shell inside.

The beauty guru fell to her knees, attempting to suck in one last breath, and finally succumbing to death.

Her body went limp and the snake began to move away from Elsie, and the moment it's head was moving against the ground, Clifford fired off the shotgun, the bullet shredding through the snake's head, and absolutely destroying it.

Clifford lifted the shotgun up, the barrel pointed towards the ceiling, allowing Graves to grab it.

Harvey unlocked the doors, but no one could really move. They were all paralyzed by what they had just watched. Well, minus Kevin, who bolted for the nearest bush to vomit.

Timothy pat Chloe's hand in a desperate attempt to make her feel the slightest bit better.

Clifford opened his umbrella, and left the room, beginning down the path.

"That's another one down, but there are only so much left. So many options to choose from! But, that isn't our decision as it is theirs, but we'll all just have to see who's next on Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

 **AN: Like I said, not my finest work. Remember, if you have a challenge idea, send them in at the bottom of your review! Also, here's a question: who is your favorite character?**

 **Oh! One other thing! I apologize for not showing much of the challenge, but, like I said before, this one was just supposed to be a filler, but the next one will be a LOT better, I promise! See you all soon, I'll get the next chapter out as quickly as I can!**


	7. A Forest Path

**AN: I don't really have much to say in this note, other than that I really gotta apologize for taking so long to get this chapter out. I have no excuses, so let us just go on, eh?**

 **AZW330: Thank you! I really don't know what to say other than that, thank you, man! While I do have to correct you on one thing though: Corrow isn't going to LA for McGillis, but for something else. You'll see soon...And again, TIMOTHY &CHLOE4LIFE! Anyway, I'll tell you this: a lot of this doesn't actually take place through TV cameras, like the investigation or Irina and Nebiros, you know, stuff like that. And, I also want to keep a realistic approach when it comes to this story, so when you ask the question: 'who the hell on Earth would air something like this?' I would reply by saying this: well, money talks man. Money talks. I like the challenges, my man, and I will keep those in mind, thanks again!**

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare: Yeah, I would've really enjoyed developing Elsie some more, but I just didn't know what to do with her. I'm glad you're liking Chloe, by the way!**

 **ShadowJcreed: Interesting theory...you never know...Ha! The Claws we're kinda like the new Team Victory, I agree with that to a degree, luckily they did a lot more then Team Victory ever did, though. Jace, Irina, or maybe someone else entirely, hmmm? We'll see soon, my friend...we'll see soon...And thank you!**

 **TheSaneSierra: Like I said to Gucci Mane LaFlare, I would've kept her in a little longer, but I couldn't figure out what to do with her, I'm sorry! And, yes, a lot of them will be dead by the end, but I don't think you should say ALL of them will end up dead, mmm? Thank you, I really appreciate it!**

 **keyblademaster avenger: I mean...mayyyybeeeee? Yeah, I am.**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: Thanks man! I'm glad you liked all of those interactions, considering I am probably the least political person you will ever meet. I also liked that scene with Dandy, I was wanting to write that for a while, but I just wasn't sure how I was going to for the longest time. And who knows, maybe Timothy and Chloe will die in this chapter? Or the next? Or maybe the one after? Only time will tell.**

 **TheGamingMonkey2002: Nah, you're right on time...somewhere in the world, anyway. I'm glad you enjoy Emily, just don't jinx it, man!**

* * *

A Forest Path

The storm had no sign of rolling over. Waves of ocean water crashed against the island cliff sides, roaring in an explosion of water.

Soft pitter-patter noises splashed against the water, which could've been a peaceful sound if not for the location of where the island was.

Small streams of water slid down off Clifford Lane's umbrella, but with a sign of intrigue as he watched the storm rain on.

After a long moment of slight peace, Clifford swung his eyes down to look at the camera.

"Previously on Total Drama Zenith, Hunter had to be shown that stealing is not enforced here, especially from that of an authority. But, his punishment is far from over.

"Teams were merged into one, and I think some of them are far more comfortable around their new team than others. And for the challenge, it was a nice game of 'Capture the Flag'.

"But, it had been the Vipers first execution of the season, which took a small hint of Eduardo's stupidity, and Emily's playing her cards right, that allowed Elsie to choke on her own words.

"Now, only eighteen remain, and with the numbers falling, I wonder how long it will take for stress to wreck someone. Find out on an all new episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

If his last night hadn't summed up his own personal hell on this godforsaken island, the next night definitely did.

Almost as soon as the challenge ended, Hunter was taken back into that pitch black room, and hooked to a chair.

Unlike last time, however, there was no table or a pendulum clock this time. Instead, St. Clarence had Queen's 'We Are the Champions' on loop.

At first he hadn't minded, he actually enjoyed the song! But after the third or fourth loop, he was already sick of it.

He couldn't shake the headphones off, nor could he sleep through the night.

Hunter just had to stay awake, listening to the same song, over, and over again.

He didn't know it, but Clifford finally had St. Clarence stop the torture device after the twenty-sixth hour.

Twenty-six hours.

That is longer than a day!

"He's an intriguing subject, actually," St. Clarence began, speaking to Clifford behind the one way window at the end of the room. "I've seen some like this, but never anything like him."

Taking a glance at the sadist, he continued. "The shaking, his pleading, and when he tried to take the headphones off...his mind is as good as gone, now."

"That's all it takes to destroy a man?" Clifford smiled. "Just a bit of music and time?"

"Enough music to drive a man into insanity is all." St. Clarence clarified, pressing a button on the panel in front of him, and stopping the music. "A couple more days and he'll just be the shell of a man he used to be."

Clifford nodded. "The next challenge starts in ten, please make it so Hunter makes it on time?"

Folding one hand behind his back, and his other rising his umbrella, Lane exited the room to wake the remaining victims.

* * *

Rubbing his pencil eraser repeatedly on his blueprints, Dylan tiredly went over the escape plan one past time in his head.

If his theory is actually correct, the helicopter should be leaving tomorrow morning, which gives him and his 'crew' time to escape.

Problem was, he didn't know how to fly a helicopter, but that is some of the main reasons why he wanted help from Erica and Daisy, and possibly even Jade.

His thoughts were disturbed when a siren went off, echoing throughout the cabin. Through the walls he heard Mickey startle awake with a light yelp.

After a short pause, the architect heard the shuffling of shoes walk down the hallway.

Dylan yawned, rolling up his blueprints and opening his drawer. Gently, he placed the plans inside before scooting away from his desk, and flinging his door open to join the others.

Outside, the constant rain seemed to have created a curtain of malice. The storm surrounding the island didn't seem to be planning to stop any time soon, and in the distance, some of the contestants could hear the waves roaring against the side of the cliffs.

Clifford made no look at any of the contestants as they exited the cabin, some shaking in fear, others too tired to really comprehend the situation.

"Nature is such an obscure element that really doesn't get as much credit as it should." Clifford finally spoke as Kevin and Alexei exited the cabin.

"Fuck you!" Lizzy spat, folding her arms in front of her chest.

The sadist's eyes lowered from watching the storm overhead, down to the drama queen.

Spinning his umbrella clockwise, and spraying off the water from the rain, Clifford took a small step, closing a fraction of distance between himself and Lizzy.

"'You don't have to live forever, you just have to live'. Do you know who said that?"

Puzzled, Lizzy shook her head.

Clifford made some kind of movement with his eyes, as if he were nodding. Taking a step closer to Lizzy, he spoke again.

"Tuck Everlasting, by Natalie Babbitt. A children's book, actually." Spinning on his heel, he stepped away from the girl.

"I don't believe in God, or the Devil, for that matter. But that quote, to me it gives those two words a new meaning: life and death.

"Frankly, I think that people claim death is a lot worse than what it actually is. All it is is just an unknown element apart of our world."

There was a pause. One that seemed to have gone on longer than it should have.

"You're fucking demented." Lizzy scowled.

Rather than denying it, Clifford just shrugged. "Some people could say that. But, I'd say, that I'm just ahead of the curve."

Turning towards his grave digger right hand, Graves handed over a clipboard.

"Thank you." Clifford smiled slightly, turning back to the teams of two. "Now, in each Total Drama season, McLean always set up some kind of...night challenge. And so, tonight, I deliver to you some of the classic challenges: a race through the forest, to the other end."

"I'm guessing there is some kind of catch?" Eduardo asked.

"No. Just to avoid whatever animals are in there." Handing the clipboard back over to Graves, the sadist stepped to the side a few feet.

"I would suggest you to be quick, because the challenge has just begun."

* * *

Almost as soon as it began, the teams split in two. Dylan, Chloe, and Timothy stood behind a tree.

The shorter one of the two crossed her arms, attempting to warm herself.

Moments later, Dylan managed to spot Erica, Jade, and Daisy navigating through the dense forest to locate their alliance.

Curling his hand into a fist, the architect tapped his knuckles against the base of the tree. Though the taps were not too loud, they were loud enough to draw Daisy's attention.

Extending her arm, Daisy swung her arm around to her chest, doing that of the 'advance' military hand signal.

"So, what's the plan?" Chloe questioned as the others rushed over.

Dylan glanced down at the shorter girl. "There's a helicopter by the cabins, that is our ticket out of here. All we gotta do is find a way to get to it."

"What type of helicopter is it?" Erica asked.

"From what I gathered yesterday, it's a Bell 206."

"Shit." Erica cursed.

The freerunner paused and took a breath, thinking for a moment. "That type of chopper needs a key."

"Like a car key?" Jade asked.

"A bit, yeah."

Dylan cursed under his breath, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "Well we don't have any time to waste. Let's go."

The alliance ran off, back towards the main cabin where Brendan, Harvey, and Graves were patrolling.

Timothy began after them, but he was quickly stopped when Chloe grabbed his hand.

"Timothy...I...I have a bad feeling. Please, we shouldn't go."

That caught him off guard. Tore him. Did he try to escape by helicopter and go back home? Or did he really trust Chloe?

The decision was obvious.

"I trust you, Chloe."

Relief washed over the conspiracy theorist's face, and she pulled him back to where they should be going to complete the challenge, although neither one of them seemed to have noticed their hands, interlocked with each other's.

* * *

Where the hell is Hunter? That was the thought going through Emily's head as she walked with her team. She noticed Jade, Daisy, and Erica run off together early on, but Hunter had been missing since last night.

Frankly, she half hoped he committed suicide, but only because it would give herself more of a chance at getting out alive.

All this rain was going to give her a headache. Emily was so sick of hearing the constant pitter-patter on the ground, or trees, or anything it could touch!

She could swear that Irina was starting to lose her mind. It was now the third time she saw her talking to herself.

Well, to be fair, this was the same girl that brought on a life sized puppet, so who knows with her, huh?

"So are we all just gonna ignore our teammates that just disappeared?" Jace was the one who voiced most of everyone's thoughts.

"Frankly, I don't give a damn." Emily argued, stepping over a fallen tree branch.

"We can't leave them behind!" Roxie retorted.

Emily turned towards Roxie, a menacing glare staring her in the eye, as if challenging her in a way. "You don't seem to understand the circumstances, Roxie."

Holding her hand still, Irina looked up at the group. "They're human too, it wouldn't be right to leave them behind."

"If we help them, we help them. I'm for whatever." Emily shrugged, turning her head to stare off into the forest.

"But you just said that-" Jace started, almost immediately getting cut off.

"No, I said that I don't give a damn." The loner interrupted, defensively.

Mickey and Roxie began to set off for their missing teammates, but stopped in their tracks suddenly, Jace warning them.

"Daisy always made herself a leader, so now that she's gone, I'm picking up the candle as your new leader."

"Jace, it's three to one." Irina shook her head.

Jace scowled in return. "But what would Daisy want? Wouldn't it be to complete this challenge? Besides it's better if we're all together."

Mickey scratched the back of his head, nodding slowly.

"Fine." Roxie sighed, stepping over towards Jace.

Jace threw up his hands in victory. "Yeah, three to one, Irina."

Spinning around, Jace kept forward, with Emily, Roxie, and Mickey close behind.

Letting go of her twitching hand, Irina took an annoyed breath, and walked after them.

* * *

While both teams seemed to be confused and questioned where their missing teammates were, those people missing were in the main cabin, the only ones arming themselves being Dylan and Daisy.

Dylan picking the lock on Krystal's would-be dorm room, and grabbing a baseball bat off a shelf.

As for Daisy, she grabbed a pin from her own room. She followed Dylan downstairs into the main room, noticing Jade pacing back and forth, and Erica sitting at one of the tables, cross-legged.

"You guys ready?" A wide-eyed Jade asked, scared for what they were about to do.

"As ready as we should be." Dylan nodded, gripping the baseball bat.

Turning towards the front door, and ready to put their plan into motion, they felt hope of surviving Clifford's sick game.

Reaching for the door handle, Dylan paused, and looked towards the others. Outside that door, he could hear footsteps running up the porch.

"Get back." The architect quietly warned, stepping away from the door and raising his bat.

Daisy raised her pin, the point sticking out to where the person would run enter the room.

Jade took a step back as Erica rose her fists to eye-level.

The door burst open, a slender boy taken aback by what he saw, and tripping over his own foot, right in front of Dylan and Daisy.

"Hunter?" Jade recalled.

The kleptomaniac's eyes frantically looked all over the room, before finally settling on the group.

"Please, take me with you. I can't stand being in this...fucking place anymore."

Dylan looked uncertain while Daisy glanced cautiously over at Erica. "Where were you yesterday?"

"Where do you think I was?" Hunter snapped. He stood up slowly. "I don't know where I was. All I know was that I was in some dark room, and he kept playing the same fucking song over...and over!"

The kleptomaniac clutched his head, and anyone could tell that he was on the verge of insanity.

"I don't know." Jade whispered.

"PLEASE!" Hunter yelled, begging, collapsing to his knees.

Dylan contemplated. "We're two short. I don't know where Timothy and Chloe are, nor do I give a flying fuck, but if it means we get to save someone else...then fine."

Hunter fell back on his knees slightly, a smile crossing his features. "Thank you!"

"Yeah." Grabbing the door handle, the architect turned it, slowly opening the door. "Now let's get going."

* * *

"Where do you think they are?" A certain conspiracy theorist asked her optimistic friend, as they walked through the forest.

As Timothy responded to her question, neither of them noticed hidden cameras within the trees, recording everything back to a room where Clifford and St. Clarence watched the footage over.

"Make the move?" St. Clarence asked, his hand hovering over a button on the computer in front of them.

"No, not yet. It's too early."

The brainwasher nodded, pulling his hand away and folding it on his lap.

While to the viewers, the screen would then fade to black. But, not until much later in the future would they be aware of the events that Detective John Corrow was doing himself down south.

For Corrow, he hadn't actually made a drive to the station for the last day, and rather he was at home, doing as much research as he could.

He already tried to find a file on Clifford Lane, but wouldn't you know it? He found absolutely nothing.

Corrow sighed, leaning back in his leather chair. He ran his hand over his face, and then reached to the table next to his chair, grabbing a glass of wine off a coaster.

Quickly, he downed the wine, and placed it back on his coaster. What was that last episode that aired? The redhead, what did they say his name was?

He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to recall the name.

There was Clifford Lane, obviously. And then Dandy, Brendan, Graves, and that other guy...what was his name?

Leaning forward, Corrow grabbed his laptop and tapped the mouse pad repeatedly.

"What was his name?" He whispered to himself.

A name seemed to fly into his head, and almost without thinking, he typed it down.

Jerome St. Clarence.

Unlike Lane before him, this time a file had come up. Smirking only slightly, he clicked it.

Unauthorized access.

It came up in big red, bolded letters over the file.

'Shit.' He groaned, placing his laptop on the table and standing up, he strode to his kitchen counter.

He only had so many leads left, and he was not going to stop investigating this case for anyone! Too many lives have already been lost, including an online star, who was executed last night. Or was it the one before?

It doesn't matter.

What does matter is why Corrow can't get through to investigate St. Clarence? Was someone else taking up this investigation?

Or more likely, the FBI have finally gotten involved in all of this.

Jonathan McGillis, one of his only leads, was dead.

He had another lead in Los Angeles, supposedly, and it's one of the best he has for now.

That sheds light to something else, Corrow should visit Fells, he needs to see McGillis' body.

Turning from his kitchen counter, Corrow decided what he was going to do: he wanted to see Fells.

* * *

"You are very persistent, John." Eric Fells noted, leading the detective through a door into the forensic lab, the same place where they found what happened to Chris McLean.

"What do you want to know?"

Rather than responding, Corrow let himself look over the body. There had been bullet holes on his chest.

"Those bullet holes, did they have any DNA on them?"

"If you mean other than McGillis, yes, there was one other, actually."

Corrow shook his head, as if expecting him to continue. "And that being?"

Eric bit his lip. "John, you are aware that this isn't your job anymore. It's a fucking terrorist attack, if anything, this is more of the CIA's job."

"No, my investigation is to discover who killed Chris McLean."

"And you already found that out!"

"No, I found a part of it. Slater was just one piece, and now I need to find out who hired him."

Fells contemplated. Blinking once, he looked back to Corrow. "Fine. The DNA belongs to one Simon Evelyn Wagner."

"I don't suppose you sent out anyone to find him?"

"So far, we don't have a point to do so."

Corrow raised an eyebrow.

"Wagner's been dead for the last twenty years."

Taken aback, Corrow gazed at McGillis' body once more.

"He was born in Germany, and died in battle during the Kosovo War. But here's something I think you'll find interesting…"

Corrow looked back to Fells.

"The last person to see Wagner alive's name was Mallory Graves."

Corrow let the information sink in, his mind already going to work on figuring out what happened. If he was correct, then this is what he believes happened:

Simon Wagner killed Mallory Graves and stole his identity. Years later, he met Clifford Lane and Damien Devereux. Sometime in the future, Devereux was arrested and imprisoned in ADX Florence.

So, to hijack the show, Lane had to hire Owen Slater to kill Chris McLean, and had his plan initiated. He must've figured McGillis would try talking to someone after Slater's death, and had Wagner/Graves kill him as well.

The idea seemed a bit all over the place, but it's the best he has right now. Corrow needed to get to Los Angeles NOW.

* * *

Frankly, he hated the rain. He hated flying in it. And most of all, he hated how cold it was.

Taking a puff of his cigarette, he caught it with his two middle and forefinger, blowing out a stream of smoke from his mouth.

The taste of vanilla swirled through his mouth, a feeling he knew, that felt pleasant.

He ignored the raindrops dripping from his hat, and into the dirt.

Taking another puff of his cigarette, he was interrupted when the side of a baseball bat slammed into the side of his head, and knocking him into unconsciousness.

Standing in all of its glory, right in front of them, was the helicopter, the Bell 206.

Emerging from the darkness, Dylan spun to face Erica. "Make sure the keys are somewhere here, then, we're flying out of here."

The team nodded, and as the group walked to the helicopter, and Erica searched the nearby crates for the keys, Hunter had to notice a CZ-USA 85 Combat in a pistol holster.

Cocking his head, he slowly reached down, and quietly unbuckled it free.

* * *

Even during the storm, none of the contestants or 'staff' had seen lightning, or heard thunder on this island.

And that's why it frightened Chloe when she heard it, accidentally stepping back into Timothy's chest.

"Are you alright?"

Glancing around, she pushed herself back forward. "Yes. Just scared about all of this, is all." She tapped her camera several times over.

"We'll be fine, you'll be fine." Timothy's usual grin seemed to have calmed her. "Anyway, why didn't you wanna go with the others?"

Chloe paused, and ran a hand through her hair. "I just had a gut feeling that something horrible was going to happen."

Before Timothy could respond, the duo were both found slightly frightened when they heard the sound of something moving through bushes ahead of them.

"Hello?" Chloe asked aloud, and just loud enough for anyone to hear.

There was no response, but rather the movements getting closer.

Timothy took a step back as Chloe quickly reached down and grabbed a sharp pointed rock off the base of a tree.

Whatever it was, it emerged from the bushes and proved that Chole and Timothy should've been scared.

It's hard to tell what exactly it was, but really just know that it is a large bear, and possibly a grizzly one, at that.

"It's okay, Chloe. Don't move and we should be fine." Timothy whispered to the shorter girl.

What the optimist said was wrong, clearly, because the bear stood up on it's two legs, and let out a malicious roar.

Chloe gripped the rock hard, careful to not let it go.

Dropping back on all four legs, it charged right for the duo. But, rather than attacking one of them directly, the bear shoved Chloe to the ground, and pinned Timothy to a tree.

The taller boy felt like, with his gut, that he was going to die right here because of this bear. Maybe he shouldn't have let his feelings for Chloe get in the way of escaping the island, after all...Maybe…

Death never came to meet Timothy, because when Chloe recovered, she sprinted to the nearest tree, and grabbed ahold of the nearest branch.

Pulling herself up, she jumped for the bear as soon as it opened its mouth, and let the rock pierce the side of its head.

Roaring with anger, the bear pushed Chloe off it, letting her land painfully with her head on a rock.

The bear approached her closer and closer, blood dripping down the side of its head, and staining its fur.

Quietly, Chloe reached behind her, hoping for anything to grab onto. Luckily, her hand found something just in time as the bear lunged at her.

Swinging her arm out with whatever it was that she grabbed, it stabbed the bear's eye.

Roaring once again in anger and pain, it backed up several paces, blood now leaking from its eye and head, and seconds later, and fell over, succumbing to its wounds.

Chloe let out a shaky breath, standing up. She felt Timothy rush over to her and wrap his arms around her.

"You saved me!"

Smiling, yet only slightly. "What're friends for?"

Right then, she stopped smiling, and looked to be on the edge of tears. "I can't believe I did that...I killed that...that bear…"

"Chloe, you did what you had to…" Timothy comforted, hugging her again. "Where did you learn to do that, anyway?"

"I didn't...I just wanted to protect you." She blushed, shrinking into her shirt.

Rather than just responding, Timothy again enveloped her in another hug.

After a good minute, Timothy leaned away from the conspiracy theorist, but let his hand linger on her cheek for much longer than he was aware for, both of them staring into each other's eyes.

Both their minds wandered to the same thing: should they make the leap? After all, this was probably the best time to do it, but what if they didn't feel the same way?

While Timothy may be an optimist at heart, he wasn't sure about some decisions that turn out to be like that.

And, it was Timothy who made the final decision. He moved his hand from her cheek, and stood up, offering his own hand to help the theorist up to her own feet.

* * *

"Got it!" Erica told the group, holding up a pair of keys.

Running over to the helicopter's cockpit, her hand was an inch away from opening the door when they were interrupted by a clap.

"Bravo!" Clifford Lane smiled, clapping as he entered the area along with Brendan, Harvey, and Graves.

"You really thought that you could just escape like that?" Clifford asked, snapping his fingers for emphasis.

Emerging from the darkness behind them was both of the teams.

Taking a step closer to Dylan, Clifford spoke again. "You thought you had this entire rebellion plot of yours under control, I'm afraid that you're wrong. I knew from the very beginning, Dylan.

"Remember that I keep hidden microphones, cameras, all of that, all over the island."

"Fuck." Dylan cursed, looking back towards Erica, Hunter, Daisy, and Jade, all of which had a different emotion on their face.

"So, I will tell you what, hm? All of you get a second chance, except one…" He cocked his head towards his right-hand.

Graves produced Ruger SP101 revolver.

"Russian roulette, anyone?"

* * *

It was in the elimination cabin, during the same night.

The Phoenixes and Vipers sat on their own couches, some frightened at what was to come, and others trying to hide that fear.

Brendan and Harvey stood with AK-47s in their arms as Clifford had his hands, folded behind his back.

Graves dropped a bullet in the chamber, and spun it. Rather then handing it over right away, he clipped on a metal cap, not allowing anyone where the bullet was, except him, and Clifford.

Placing the revolver in the center of the table, he stepped away, allowing whatever it was that happened, happened.

The table must've been dragged into the room by one of the interns, but they hadn't cared. In a full circle, starting at who sat in front of Clifford, and going clockwise, was Hunter, Jade, Erica, Dylan, and Daisy, where it would then return to Hunter again, if he were that unlucky.

The kleptomaniac grabbed the pistol, and cocked it, letting the chambers spin one over. Usually, it never was the first bullet, but when Hunter held a pistol to his own head, all he hoped for was that there had been no bullet in this chamber.

There was a long pause, and finally, Hunter pulled the trigger.

There was nothing.

The kleptomaniac let out a shaky breath, and cocked the revolver again. Lightly, he placed it back on the table.

Jade picked the revolver up next, and put it to her own head. Worriedly, and quickly, she already pulled the trigger. She knew that if she were to die, it would've been a quick one. There was no point in dragging it on.

Again, nothing.

The savant attempted to cock the revolver, failing to do so. She used both of her thumbs to pull the metal bar down, and rotated the chambers once more.

Handing the revolver over to Erica, the girl took it from Jade's hand.

Unlike the others, Erica looked calm and collected about what was to come. Quietly, she placed the revolver under her chin.

Erica could hardly believe that she was doing this. Forced to play Russian roulette with some people she hadn't known for too long.

She pulled the trigger.

She couldn't have been more relieved to hear the sound of a click in her life.

Cocking the gun once more, Erica handed the revolver over to Dylan.

The architect cursed under his breath, taking hold of the revolver, and his heart was beating faster than it ever did in his life.

Opening his mouth, Dylan aimed the revolver at the roof of his mouth, and biting down slightly on the barrel.

Taking a shallow breath, he pulled the trigger…

And again, there was nothing.

Daisy slouched. It was her turn next...she was going to die…

Grabbing the revolver from Dylan, the girl scout cocked it herself and put it up to her head, completely fearlessly.

"Clifford, I'll see you in Hell."

She pulled the trigger.

But it was not what she expected. There was no gunshot.

Daisy dropped the revolver to the table, and glanced up at Hunter.

It was the kleptomaniac's turn again…

Dropping his eyes to his feet, Hunter grabbed the revolver and out it to his head with no complaint, and without a word.

He wrapped his finger around the trigger…

" _I've paid my dues…_

 _"Time after time…_ "

It was playing through the loudspeakers all over the island...it was that goddamn song again!

He lowered the revolver from his head slowly, and he saw him…

St. Clarence was sitting right in front of him.

The brainwasher smirked, nodding his head to the music.

"Fuck you!"

Turning the revolver around, Hunter pulled the trigger.

An explosion of blood blew from St. Clarence's head, and he fell backwards with the chair, and onto the floor. His blood already staining the carpet.

Brendan and Harvey grabbed Hunter by the arms and pulled him out of his chair.

Clifford's smile never faded as he circled around the table, and looked at the person who sat across from Hunter, now dead, and bleeding from their head.

"And that is how you go out with a bang, ladies and gentlemen." Clifford announced. "Now, go get some sleep, will you?"

Daisy and Erica ran from their sides of the table, and watched as more and more blood stained the carpet.

"Oh God, rest in peace, Dylan." Jade swallowed down her own vomit, looking pale, over the architect's body.

Clifford Lane himself held an umbrella over his head as he walked down the gravel pathway.

"And yet, another one is dead. Can't say I'll be missing him, but I do think some people will. Just not me.

"Anyway, make sure to join us next time to see who dies, and who cries, next time on Total Drama Zenith."


	8. Twisted Chain

**AN: Well, I, uh, think this episode is a bit different than usual, but it is still another episode I think you guys can enjoy, so, here you go!**

 **AZW220: Thank you, and I am glad you enjoyed both of those stories, although I don't recall putting Total Drama Chaos on my page, I still am aware that it is a great story! I know that when people go with their gut, they are usually always right, and it really does seem like some kind of sixth sense, doesn't it? And, the reason Clifford didn't drag them into Russian Roulette is to be answered in this chapter, actually. The bear was just an insurance policy. RIP Dylan, you will be missed. And I like your theory! Question is, will any of it turn out to be true? Yeah, probably. Also, I wanted it to look like Chloe and Timothy would kiss, but NOPE! Not yet, but maybe that'll be changing soon, who knows? I do! I really like all of the ideas for challenges and executions you keep putting in your reviews, it keeps me open minded, but I do need some challenges for the merge, that's all! Thank you again!**

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare: Thank you! I enjoyed how Corrow's investigation went in this episode, so I hope you do too. And, ah well, just a minor mistake, it's whatever, you know?**

 **ShadowJcreed: Actually, that's spot on! You got it!**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: Thank you! I had that idea of brainwashing for a while, but I wasn't sure how I was going to use it, but I think I got it down pretty good, right? And I am glad you are enjoying Timothy and Chloe, they are also probably some of my two favorite characters to write, but that's just because they have a bit more plot then the others as of now. And I also PMed you the explanation, I know you already saw it, I'm just saying it again so I don't look like a jerk by ignoring that if someone else reads this.**

* * *

Twisted Chain

In some cases, the rainfall could be considered the best for nature. But, too much of it could be similar to a kind of overdose, obviously not for the humans on the island, but it could lead to the death of the inhabitants...anything is possible.

"Previously on Total Drama Zenith, the teams were in a race against each other to reach the other side of the forest first. However, five people of those team members, seemed to have gotten a bit courageous.

"Attempting to escape the island via helicopter. Obviously, it didn't work. Of course, someone had to be punished.

"So, rather than punish the losing team, I decided on a quick game of Russian Roulette to get it into these kids' heads that there is no escape. So, even if it wasn't, by book standards, a fair execution, Dylan received what he deserved.

"Now, only so many teens are left, and soon, that large number will only reach one. So, that list will be shortening at the end of this episode, so stay on board for an all new episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

The dark could have several different meanings in the mind of the sane and insane.

Some people had a preference for the darkness. Clifford did, for one. And so did St. Clarence.

But there has never been a good thing called such as a light darkness. Whatever Lane wanted with Hunter was over now, and he had a new victim to torment.

Chloe's eyes fluttered open. Where was she? How could this fucked up situation get any worse?

That was when she heard a loud indie pop song sound, like the sound of a guitar and the pound of a drum, creating a warm-like sound.

" _Robert's got a quick hand,_

 _"He'll be looking around the room, he won't tell you his plan._ "

Chloe could only just hear the sound of what sounded like someone dancing. It really didn't take much of a genius to figure out who which one of these sadists that it was.

Her eyes had to force themselves to adjust to the darkness of the room. Her heart was beating rapidly within her chest, and almost just as fast when she was around Timothy.

All she could really see was the shape and silhouette of Clifford Lane, tapping his foot along the tiled floor. Twisting his feet in a back and forth motion, and his arms locked at the elbow, rocking them back and forth.

It was only then that Chloe realized that the sadist dancing towards her.

Twisting his hips, he stuck his foot out and spun himself around on his foot, opening his dark eyes, pools of malevolence filled in what looked like a bliss, and staring right at the conspiracy theorist.

"I used to love this song." He smirked, crossing his arms and snapping his fingers, and then extending them in moments apart, and snapping his fingers almost simultaneously.

"That was until your generation fucked it over." Clifford gestured at the girl, still smirking.

"What're you going to do to me?" The theorist asked, completely scared for her own life.

"Nothing horrendous!" Clifford shouted with glee, taking a further step towards Chloe. "I am aware you were a part of that rebellion."

Tears began to form in the edges of her eyes, and began to drip down her face. "You're going to kill me, aren't you?"

Clifford's smirk never faded as he crossed his arms behind his back, leaning down to her face. "I thought about it. But then I figured, 'no, that'd be lame.' Instead, I wanted to ask you some questions, rather."

The rest of her senses seemed to come flowing in, and for the first time she felt the cold steel of handcuffs strapped over her wrists.

If her fear could kill, she would have died a long time ago.

"What did you mean?" She asked, watching as Clifford took steps away from her, placing his hands on the table in front of her.

The sadist pointed his index finger at the projector screen, not like she could see it, however.

"On this screen will be some images, and I want you to say the first word that comes to your mind."

"What!?" Chloe nearly yelled. "If you think we're alike, then you're completely wrong!"

"Am I? Anyone can become what you think is a psychopath. Personally, I, myself, see myself as an artist."

"You're killing us!" She yelled back at him.

"That's the idea!" Clifford shouted back. "Now, shall we begin?" Without waiting for Chloe to respond, he held up a remote, and clicked the button, flicking the screen to life, and showing the first picture.

The music came to a stop. Clifford, or someone else must've turned it off to allow her to focus on whatever this was going to be.

The first image was a cartoonish drawing on a house, and looked quite stereotypical as one as well.

"Warmth." Chloe choked out, lifting her shoulder slightly and rubbing her eyes on her sleeve.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw another silhouette seeming to scrape a pencil against a piece of paper atop a clipboard.

Lane clicked the button again, and the image of the cartoonish house disappeared, and was only replaced by an image of a portrait of the Mona Lisa.

"Adventure."

The sound of the remote clicked once again, and the image flicked to a wolf, and a piece of meat hanging out of its mouth.

"Death." She gulped. Even if he said he wasn't going to kill her, she felt that she had been lied to.

The image altered before their eyes, and they both watched as the image changed to the same helicopter Dylan and his group had been tried to escape by.

Even though it hadn't been her who had tried to escape, she felt her heart being ripped out of her chest as she remembered this event.

"Hope."

Clifford knew she broke the first rule already, but rather than say anything, he decided to let it slide, because the next image would hit home...at least, he hoped it would.

It was an image of Timothy and her walking through the forest during the previous challenge. It was obvious that it had been edited, the lighting being even more light.

"Love." She regretted it almost as soon as it escaped her mouth. She wasn't ever going to be with Timothy. In other circumstances, she believed that they could really be true.

"And finally the truth comes out." Clifford smirked, letting the image stay on the screen as he slowly began to circle her.

"Love is so worthless. What is it really? Just a companion for anyone to have."

"Of course that's what like love is." Chloe argued, looking back up at the sadist.

"And that's so boring!" Clifford stopped in his tracks, turning his back to the table, and pressing his hands onto it's top.

Chloe looked down at her feet, for the first time noticing that her shoes were still on. Had she never taken them off before she went to bed?

"Why did you bring me here?" She asked, her eyes, red from tears, looking back up at Lane.

"Because even if you didn't perform that escape, someone still needs to be punished."

"But I didn't do anything!"

"None of you ever did. They just didn't want to play the game by my rules."

The conspiracy theorist looked down at her feet again. This was the end of her, wasn't it?

Clifford began to circle around her again, only to stop moments from her side, tapping his chin in thought. "But, I will let all of this go unless you kill Timothy yourself."

"What!?" Chloe yelled, and it looked like she was on the verge of tears again.

"You heard me, Chloe. All you have to do, is kill him." He reached under the table and produced a knife, placing it back on top of the table.

Chloe lifted her head up, letting her eyes stare at the ceiling of the room she was trapped in. She had to balance the pros and cons in her head.

It was almost a no brainer. There were so many more cons than pros going through her mind. But it was also such a selfish thing to do.

"Okay...I'll do it."

* * *

She felt that she could hardly breathe as she entered Timothy's room with a knife. Under the covers, the optimist was sleeping peacefully.

It felt like hours by every time that she took a step closer and closer, and slowly raising her knife above her own head.

Sniffing, she quickly realized she was at the edge of his bed, and Clifford's knife held above Timothy's head.

"No!" She dropped herself to her knees, and startling Timothy awake.

"I can't do it, I'm so sorry." She muttered to herself, tossing the knife behind her and letting it slide under the door.

"Hey, Chloe!" The optimist rolled over, looking at the girl he so much adored.

She could tell he was quite sleepy, but he would wake soon, considering that it was the middle of the night, anyway.

Chloe grabbed Timothy's hand from under his sheet, and placed it on her cheek.

"Clifford wanted me to kill you, Timothy." She admitted, and the optimist felt as she squeezed his hand harder.

"He wanted me to do the same thing." Timothy admitted as well. He could never hurt her, and neither could she.

They stared off into each other's eyes, similar as to how they did back in the forest. Then, they weren't sure, but seeing as how that their situation has become so much more dangerous than before…

It was Chloe who acted on urge at last, and she leaned in, connecting their lips in a deep, and passionate kiss.

It felt for hours that it lasted, but really, it was only a minute or two before she had to pull away, a bright red blush on her cheeks, and a wide smile on her face.

Ever since this show began, they felt hopeless and lost, and occasionally, depressed. But now, they finally felt happy, and really, wasn't that all that mattered?

* * *

Although it was definitely, relatively, peaceful during the night, it hadn't been for two individuals during the deep hours of the night.

There were two people that hadn't been so lucky during this night. But then again, when was it ever on this island?

Another one of the castmates entered the room of Marisa, and had done the same thing to Irina later that same night.

The silhouette of the castmate quietly stepped along the rug of the room, and little had any of them known, the earbuds in his ears could give away his identity, though only the people who knew his past.

Standing over her body, the figure tilted his head to the side, watching the redhead seem to be sleeping quite peacefully.

But it wall all interrupted when he slammed his hand over her mouth, muffling her future scream.

Her eyes shot open, and she could just make out the shape of his figure, but still had no idea of who he was, and her legs began to flail under his grip, and her hands grasping around his own hands, as if not knowing what to do with them.

Curling his hand into a fist, the unknown castmate swing his fist around, slamming his knuckles into her head.

Consciousness faded from Marisa, and her eyes shut tight.

Seeing his work a quarter percentage complete, he bent down and scooped her figure into his arms, and spun around, starting for the door.

He opened the door into the hallway, and glanced back behind his shoulder to make sure he left nothing untouched. He saw the moonlight flooding in through the window, and it washed over his face.

There was a blank look on his face, something no one had really seen from him before.

Hunter turned away from the window, and continued on with his work.

* * *

When the morning came, Clifford had pressed his hand down on a button, blaring one long sound through the loudspeakers held up throughout the island.

It had been a sound no one had ever liked to hear, all of them knew what was to come. And each contestant of this so called 'game' were forced to get dressed and eat breakfast, before another one of them would inevitably be killed at the end of the day.

One thing to know about Emily is that she is an observer. Although, she doesn't know this island as well as Clifford does, she does know this giant cabin.

Each of the deceased contestant's rooms were locked, and usually, she was always the last one out of her room.

So, to see that Kevin's door was still closed bothered her as she passed the room.

Time felt to have slowed down as she got further and further away from the room, until eventually she finally did stop.

Emily's instincts are, and almost always are, on point. It felt unusual that anyone would just stop trying after a bit early into the game, or maybe it was just the stress that got to him?

Turning on her heel, Emily began to walk back to the door, some would say that her mind is swimming, but she would argue that it is very clear.

Turning the handle on the door, she could only feel a sense of dread in her throat as she entered.

The covers on his bed looked like they had been thrown over where he would've been sleeping.

The window on the wall above the bed wasn't opened, and chances is that it is still locked. And besides, who would jump out of a two story building, anyway? Considering Kevin's body-size, he would've ended up dead.

The only closed door in the room was that to the bathroom.

She felt her hand being guided to the handle, and she opened it, and immediately saw a bathtub filled with stained crimson water.

She staggered back in disbelief, yet not horror or fear. All she could see in the tub was a bare chested Kevin, his eyes closed, and blood dripping from cuts on his wrists.

On the tiled floor was a blood stained knife, something that piqued her interest so much more, and began to approach it, only for a hand to wrap around her shoulder.

"I'd prefer if you didn't touch it." Clifford smirked, his hands folded behind his back as he stepped into the bathtub, and looked at the new body that was added to the collection.

Brendan and Harvey pushed themselves past her, and both of them looking at Kevin's deceased form.

* * *

Downstairs at the two tables, it was all silence between the two teams. No talk, but there was definitely something else instead.

Chloe and Timothy both exchanged secret smiles from across their own table. Occasionally, there would be the faintest blush on their cheeks.

But all of that disintegrated when Brendan and Harvey both walked down the stairs with a nude Kevin in their arms, and cuts on his wrists.

It was Chloe that went pale when she noticed Clifford walking down after them, and holding the same knife that he had given her to kill Timothy.

Handing the knife over to Brendan to take it away. Folding his hands behind his back, Clifford walked down the aisle between the two tables.

"Today we have a new challenge!" He announced, spinning around to look at the teams.

"What's the point? Another person is already dead." Lizzy argued, pushing her bowl away from herself.

"I know. We're thinning the numbers, aren't we? Now, the challenge is rather simple: Vipers, you must find Marisa, and Phoenixes, you find Irina."

"I'm sorry, what do you mean 'find'?" Jace questioned, crossing his arms.

"I mean 'find' them because they are both hooked up to their own individual traps, both of them designed to kill them within a certain time frame. However, if you save one, the other one is forced to die."

"Well that's fucking demented." Daisy cursed under her breath.

"I tell you all this, though. They are both in the same place on this island. So, while I would suggest for you to work together on it, I would be a fool to say that. So, have fun!"

* * *

The rain was just as bad as it almost always was. There were no more teams for this challenge, it seemed. Everyone split off to run off and do what could do to save a teammate.

Most of them were in pairs of two, others were on their own, and some just with as many people on their team as they could follow.

One of those solo people making his way along the forest alone was Jace. But, unlike some of the other people on his team, he has an agenda of his own.

He wanted to watch someone, figure them out. But, that would be quite something similar to that of Jack, but it is a useful skill to have.

And those two unfortunate people were both a part of the alliance that tried to escape. Not keeping tabs on them would just be idiotic.

Jade and Erica. Two sums of the same stitch.

But, he did have to admit, spying on them was another task altogether.

"I don't know why I thought I could escape." Jade muttered. She felt her feet aching beneath her, the soles of her shoes slamming into the dirt of the Earth as they walked.

"Just because we failed once doesn't me we will fail again." Erica retorted.

"So what are we supposed to do!?" Jade snapped, and sliding in front of the free runner, stopping her from walking forward. "Clifford is smarter than us, and he has more resources than us, the guy is unstoppable!"

Fed up with Jade's talk of what seemed like nonsense, Erica's hands shot up and gripped her by her shoulders. "Clifford might look like an unstoppable force, and yes, he is strong and resourceful, but he is not smarter than us."

"That's ridicu-"

"Don't give up hope!" Erica interrupted. "We can outsmart him, together. We can find a way off of this island, together."

She almost seemed like the shell of the girl that she was when this 'game' started. Now, she wasn't even sure she would be able to get out. But even still, she was still willing to try.

The savant reached forward and clasped her arms around Erica, a sign that finally sealed their friendship.

It was a lot longer than they anticipated, and Erica had to force the weaker girl off of her. "We should hurry." And with that said, the two continued, going deeper into the forest, and, unknown to them, being watched from a distance.

* * *

The dirt of the ground seemed to squish beneath their feet because of the rain as eight sets of feet walked along the same path.

The one that was leading them, upon deciding that no one else was near, spun around and gripped her teammate by the shirt, and shoving him against a tree, and holding him there.

Behind Daisy, Mickey and Roxie could only watch as the stronger girl glared at Hunter's mug.

"What the fuck is wrong with you, asshole!?" She howled at him, her grip tightening around his collar.

"What? Me!?" Hunter exclaimed back in disbelief, feeling her iron grip force him further into the bark of the tree.

"You shot one of us, you killed one of the people helping us escape!"

A variety of so many different emotions seemed to have formed on his face, all at the same time. His eyes narrowed in pure hatred. "That sonuvabitch deserved it."

The kleptomaniac was almost cut off right then and there when he felt her fist connect with his jaw at high-speed. She let him go, and he fell into the mud.

"You're no better than him. You're just like him!" Daisy shrieked, referring to Clifford.

Spitting a pool of blood from his mouth, he returned a glare back up to Daisy. "And you'll be the next one to die."

Her anger reached its peak, and she grabbed Hunter's collar once more, and hoisted him back onto his feet. "Maybe, but not today."

Slamming her elbow into his nose, Hunter's head cocked back, providing her the opportunity to expertly throw him back, and crushing his head on the side of the tree, and letting him slip into unconsciousness.

There was a long pause, probably one that lasted much too long because Roxie had to break the silence. "I'd hardly see that as necessary."

"It wasn't," Daisy answered, slowly turning herself to face the pharmacist, "but it damn well felt good."

* * *

"Please don't tell anyone!" Chloe begged Timothy.

The conspiracy theorist was looking at her feet, and looked embarrassed, like what she did last night shouldn't had happened.

"I wasn't going to, believe me." Timothy reassured. He swore he saw Chloe's cheeks burning, and even if he wanted to shrug it off, he couldn't.

"I'm such an idiot, Timothy. Can we please forget about what happened last night? I was an idiot."

"No!" Timothy stopped, and took Chloe's small hands in his own, in one, swift movement.

"What happened last night was probably the greatest thing to ever happen to me." He admitted. Still, the smaller girl wouldn't look up at him.

"Why do you say that?" She asked, and keeping her head down low, looking at the dirt in the ground.

Timothy paused. He didn't really know what to say. He had never met a girl as fantastic as Chloe, so maybe that is what it should be.

"You're fantastic, Chloe. You're awesome, I don't know how to explain it, I just know that you're a great person and friend to be around."

He let the information sink in. Finally, Chloe looked back up at Timothy, and a smile going from ear to ear. It was probably the first time he really noticed how beautiful she was when she smiled.

He felt Chloe's hand turn in his, and wrap around his wrists. "If I'm understanding what you're saying, I could almost swear you were in love with me."

"Maybe I am." Was Timothy's only reply, and he promptly bent down to peck her lips with his.

There was a brief moment in time where, these two were finally happy, just like that moment last night. But, when they realized where they were, waves upon waves of determination hit them almost at the same time.

"I won't let them hurt you." Timothy whispered to her, stroking her hair.

Chloe smiled. "Well, can I ask you if you're my boyfriend?"

"Do you really need to ask?" Timothy's optimistic smile coming back onto his features.

She loved that beautiful smile of his. She loved that about him. He never seemed to let the worst of anything get to him. She had never seen him sad, he was always just Timothy.

Realizing the position they were in, they finally disconnected themselves from each other, though it was only Chloe's smile that faded.

"What about the others? They know we didn't go with them for the escape, what if they think we ratted them and out, or worse!?"

"Don't think about that!" Timothy begged, reaching forward and grabbing his new girlfriend by her shoulders.

"I-I want us to be free, together." She worriedly looked back at him, slipping her hand into his.

He really didn't know how to respond. Yes, he wanted to comfort her, but how was he supposed to? Not in a situation that they were in was normal, and Timothy had never entered a relationship at all. So really, all he could think of is the perfect comfort, but also one of the most cliché in the book.

"I love you." He told her, squeezing her hand reassuringly.

"I love you, too."

* * *

In an undisclosed location, somewhere on the island, both Irina and Marisa woke up in two glass rooms, side by side, an air vent in the ceiling, yet not reachable for anyone on the island.

A metal door was the only way in or out of the rooms, and both of them had a keypad. A note on the opposite side of the door.

There was always one thought to flow through their minds when they woke up:

Where are they?

The lights flicked on, and on the opposite side of the room, Clifford Lane stepped inside, whistling a tune no one really cared to ever find out.

"Where the hell are we?" Marisa asked out loud, rather than internally. Something Irina had made sure to do.

"In a bunker." Clifford answered, slowly approaching. The sound of him tapping his umbrella against the stone floor created a menacing sound, and only because they knew exactly who it was, holding it.

"What is this about?" This time it was Irina.

No matter how many questions they were gonna ask, Clifford would ignore them all until he thought it was necessary to actually answer them.

"You know I was always really fascinated what happens when someone dies. It is really interesting, because, one moment you're there, and the next, you're just a corpse lying on the pavement.

"I remember, I used to do these kinds of experiments, where I took these little, ah, wires, and I would have a box full of these mice with their babies, and I would take these wires, and just, electrocute the parents.

"I really just wanted to see how those babies would react before I did the same thing to them, or maybe I would drop them off a bridge, or tie them up on a railroad track, or, my personal favorite, duck tape them to the exhaust pipe of my dad's car."

All through this dreaded story of what he was telling them, his smile never dimmed, and he looked almost proud by what he had done.

It left Irina speechless. There was nothing that she could say after a story like that. Some of the worst people have a family tragedy, and then someone like Clifford is just, a sick fuck who was just born bad.

Marisa looked disgusted by the story. No one who could do this to both animals and people without batting an eye isn't human. They just aren't.

"Why are you telling us this?" Marisa asked, almost choking on her own words.

Clifford just shrugged in response. "Don't know. Just a story some people should know about me. To...get to know me on a more personal level."

"You're a fucking monster."

"Am I? Because if that's so, then people have always been monsters. People never change."

And thus, the camera faded to darkness once more, but there is always some kind of light in the darkness.

* * *

He was lucky.

Corrow had managed to get aboard a plane much earlier than the one he was planning for.

He had arrived in L.A. that night, and he had a meeting with someone who could give him new information tomorrow.

So, when stopping his rental 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee on the sixth street viaduct upon seeing Clifford Lane's number one guy.

"Simon." Corrow spoke, stepping out of his car, and looking at Mallory Graves, living, and breathing, right in front of him.

Shutting the door, he slowly took steps towards the gravedigger. He felt his heels bounce off the cement. He could hardly believe what he was seeing.

"Detective John Corrow." Wagner voiced in his European accent.

What he felt was disbelief finally disappeared, and he pulled his Smith and Wesson MP on him, pointing it directly at his chest. "Simon Wagner, you're under arrest."

The gravedigger cocked his head to the side, as if he was confused. "That's not my name, detective."

"Whatever. Mallory Graves, you're under arrest."

This time, he nodded instead, and turned away, with his back facing the detective.

Removing a pair of handcuffs from his back pocket, Corrow refused to lower his pistol as he began to approach him.

He reached forward to strap the cuffs on, but all of that changed when Graves kicked his leg backwards, and striking Corrow's knee.

Staggering backwards one, two, three feet, Graves turned back around, raising his elbow above his face as some kind of shield, adrenaline coursing through his veins as he thrust himself forward.

Corrow thought he saw his life flash before his eyes as his body seemed to be glued down on the edge of the bridge.

His head almost automatically shot to the left, and he determined, within milliseconds that that was where he was going to go.

He leapt forward suddenly, his feet springing him off the ground, and forced his stomach to face towards the ground. He held his arms up, and landed on them intentionally, rolling himself over onto his feet.

Wind felt as if it was slashing his face as he forced himself to slow down against the bridge. Whirling himself to face Corrow, he swiftly brought up a familiar pistol to one that Corrow had seen before.

A GLOCK 19.

The same pistol that Owen Slater had used to kill him weeks earlier.

It was what called instinct is what happened next. It was almost exactly the same as what happened at that construction site, as Corrow brought up his Smith and Wesson, and Graves with his GLOCK.

Once again, luck seemed to have been on Corrow's side when he fired off the bullet, and it shredded through Wagner's chest.

It didn't seem that he noticed what had happened until the force of the shot made him stagger back, and he pressed himself against the edge of the bridge.

Looking Corrow in the eyes one last time, Graves toppled over the bridge, and down into the L.A. River.

The detective felt time seem to have come back to it's usual pace as he stood up, and started to the edge of the bridge. Looking over, he saw the body of Simon Wagner, with blood flowing from a crack in his head, and staining the river a crimson color.

"Dammit." Corrow cursed, taking a breath as he let reality settle in.

* * *

Emily wasn't looking for her teammates. She was looking, but not for her teammates.

She recalled the invincibility statues Clifford mentioned at the start of the game, but Lord knows that he may have been lying to get their hopes up.

"Ah, señorita!"

"Piss off, Eduardo, we aren't on the same team."

"Believe me, I know, but I do think we would be able to help each other."

"I helped you once! That is all!" Emily shot, narrowing her eyes into a meaning glare as she wheeled herself around to face him.

"And I remember it well. I could be a good help for you, señorita."

"Please." Emily scoffed.

"Do you not believe me?"

"What gave it away?" She replied sarcastically.

There was yet another moment of silence, something which someone would be able to get used to when in this horrendous situation.

"Then I'll speak to you later, señorita."

She never looked at Eduardo once during that conversation. Rather, she paid her own mind to what she was looking for. She only knew the 'handsome' boy was gone was when she heard him stalk off.

But even as she searched for something she wasn't entirely sure of, another question popped into mind.

What exactly was this island?

There was a lighthouse on the other side of the island that could only be reached by a bridge. Then, there was the graveyard.

Why was there a graveyard on an island that nobody could seen to find? Now, she wasn't exactly an expert in geography, but she could hardly remember an island called Paspinêw.

It doesn't matter. The only reason he probably chose this island was because it was either so unknown, or because it is almost impossible to reach.

She decided she didn't care what this place was, all she wanted and cared about was getting off this island alive.

* * *

" _I've paid my dues,_

 _"Time after time…_ "

It was a good song in general, but when it came to someone like Hunter, it was a torture device.

His earbuds were in his ears, and once again, they were playing this song again, and again, on loop.

Reaching into his pocket, the kleptomaniac retrieved a quarter to mess with as he looks for Daisy.

Curling his hands, he leaned them in front of them, both pointing horizontally at each other, allowing him to expertly flick one coin to his hand, and then back again.

When he had these earbuds in, he had a mission he was forced to accomplish.

* * *

"You still haven't told us why we're here." Irina pointed out to Clifford from within her own glass cell.

It felt as if he were humming the same song for the last hour, because Lane hadn't said a thing since his little...story of his.

He seemed to have gone over what he did tell them in his head, as if silently determining whether or not she was telling the truth.

"I believe you're right!" Clifford exclaimed, turning away from the table he was sitting at, having a sip of water.

It looked as if he were going to ramble over the area he was sitting at moments ago.

"You're teammates have a choice to either save you, or to let you die."

Both of the strange girls felt their heart slam in their chest.

"One of us is going to die?" Irina asked, as if she had to verify what he was saying was true.

"Indeed. They can only save one of you. Because when one door is opened, that determines which one of you dies."

"And if both doors are opened at the same time?" Marisa asked, pressing her hands against the glass wall.

"Then life and death always finds a way." Clifford replied, throwing his head backwards, stretching it.

They let this new information sink in. They felt as if they couldn't move. One of them is going to die.

"Why do you want to kill us?" Marisa collapsed to the floor, sprawling herself out, yet tilting her head to look at Clifford through the glass.

To them, it looked as if Clifford wasn't sure how to answer that question.

"Well, let's put it in perspective. The most interesting people in movies, books, and in life, are the people you all hate the most. I'm talking about Jack the Ripper, the Zodiac Killer, the Freeway Phantom, all of those people are serial killers.

"Do you know what they have in common? None of them were ever caught."

"You still haven't answered my question." Marisa shot with a glare, something that made Clifford smirk once more.

"Let me shorten my answer, then. I've always found it fascinating to see the life of someone drain from their eyes. To see someone take their last breath. And notice how horrified they always are when they see someone they know plunge a knife into their chest."

"Okay! I get it!" Marisa shouted, sitting herself up and scooting further away from the glass window.

Irina glanced down at her feet. "All you are is just another serial killer, then."

Lane eyed Irina. "No, I'm not a serial killer. I don't recall killing any of you myself. I've always just been the middle man."

One thing seemed to have echoed through their heads almost at the same time. They felt two words repeat over and over in their heads.

'He's right.'

* * *

"Why are you following us!?" Erica shouted at Jace, keeping her composure, but holding the shadow in the dirt, and keeping him there.

"Isn't it obvious!" Jace shouted back, his hands wrapped around Erica's as he tried to pry them off of him.

"Not exactly, why don't you explain?" Erica leaned down, their noses inches apart.

He growled in annoyance, but he was quick to figure the only way of escape was to tell her what she wanted to hear.

"I wanted to follow you because you were part of that alliance."

"Christ." The free runner cursed, letting go of Jace and standing to her feet, feeling the soles of her shoes dig into the Earth soil.

"And how much do you know?"

"Enough to know you're willing to try again." The shadow revealed, crossing his arms with a small smirk, knowing that he caught her.

She bit her lip, gazing around their current area in the forest, back and forth until she settled her eyes back on Jace.

"What is it that you want?"

"What do you think? I want in, isn't it obvious?"

Erica glimpsed away, as if she were unsure what she should say to him. "And declining you wouldn't be very humane."

"No, it wouldn't." Jace returned. From where she stood, she could only believe she saw his eyes shine with victory.

"But what would happen if I didn't let you in? Hypothetically, of course."

"Then I'll just have to tell everyone in this...place, that you're planning another break out."

"You would do that, but would you when you have a broken jaw?" Jade asked, noticing Erica's hand slowly drift further and further away from her own body.

The shadow couldn't help but let out a giggle. "You drive a hard bargain."

"Maybe that's because we aren't bargaining."

She didn't see a point in continuing this conversation any further, letting him go, dropping her arms to her side, and pushing herself and Jade along the forest.

"I hope to hear from you soon!" They heard Jace exclaim from behind them as they walked, but neither of them turned to look back.

* * *

"This game is life or death, why should I help save my teammate if I wanna live?"

That seemed to have become Lizzy's philosophy as time went on, and Alexei was slowly starting to dislike her more and more because of it.

"They are still people, living and breathing-"

"So am I! All we've been doing since we started doing this...this game of Clifford's, and I am sick of it!"

"Lizzy, you can't be thinking that, surely?"

"I am, and I am done. So, while the rest of you run around for people who are going to die anyway, I'll be taking a shower!"

With that, Lizzy furiously spun away from Alexei and stomped off.

There really was only one thing he could do now: watch as Lizzy's figure disappeared into the trees and bushes of the forest, her figure becoming a shadow, and then that shadow fading away.

* * *

"Well, it's about time!" Clifford sat up at the table he was sitting at.

Light flowed in through the door that had been opened into the bunker, and he saw a pair of tennis shoes make their way down the stairs, followed by the silhouette of a girl, and another of a boy.

"Daisy, Roxie, Mickey, you are the first ones here, so I would like to announce that whichever person you chose to save, is completely up to you."

He stepped out of view, yet not before gesturing towards the two glass boxes with Irina and Marisa.

Both of the girls looked pale, and both of their eyes wide. The others wouldn't know it, but they felt almost the same thing in their veins.

Sweat beginning to drench their skin, a ringing in their ears, their hearts pounding against their chest.

Daisy swallowed, and stood in front of one of the iron doors, raising her index finger, and slowly began to punch in the four numbered code to open the door.

'6458' the note had said, and the door opened, where Irina almost fell to the floor, and staring at Daisy with thankful eyes.

"No!" Came Marisa's scream, her hand curled, her fingers digging into her palm as she slammed her fist against the ballistic glass.

"Yes!" Came from Clifford as the door to her room was locked shut, the bolts firing into their locks, it wouldn't let anyone in or out, even if a code was put in.

A cloud of what looked like a strong, thick fog slowly began to seep out of the air vent. It wasn't silent, either, as Marisa forced herself to look at the gas, before turning around and slamming her fist against the glass even harder.

Her screams began to be muffled from the glass, or maybe it was because of the gas, who knows?

It only took mere seconds for the gas to take up the entirety of the room, the pounding on the glass only increasing more and more as the gas flowed in.

Marisa began to cough, and she quickly raised her sleeve to cover her mouth as she began to cough, and it increased, much more violently.

Her eyelids began to flutter, and she realized that this was the end of her life.

She coughed one final time, a spur of blood creating a pool on the glass, and she let her hand slam against it one last time, her mind beginning to drift away as her lungs gasped in one last attempt for real air.

Her knees collapsed underneath her, and her hand began to slide down the window, and dragging her blood down with her. Her eyes froze, and her hand fell limply to her side, and it became clear to the rest of the room, that her days on Earth had just ended.

Roxie turned Mickey around to face her, and let him cry into her shirt. It was another sight that no one could be able to have unseen.

* * *

"Vipers, it just hasn't been your week, has it?" Clifford asked when the teens were eating dinner. He took to notice that there was now only five members of the Vipers left, and nine of the Phoenixes.

"Hey, at least we know who we're killing next if we fail." Lizzy declared smugly, eyeing Chloe. Unbeknownst to her, she squeezed Timothy's hand under the table, something that no one had noticed.

"Well, just be glad you lost two today, and not three. There is no execution tonight." Clifford replied, taking a step away from the tables, and started go walk down the aisle.

Opening the front door, he raised an umbrella high above his head. "And so, tonight, two more are gone, and yet another will soon be joining them. I suggest we find out together who that is next time on Total Drama Zenith."


	9. What I Deserve

**AN: This chapter took WAAAAY too long to get out! I changed the challenge about six times: a grave robbing challenge, then to a murder mystery (I said 'screw it' because it felt too much like Danganronpa or something), back to the grave robbing challenge, back to the murder mystery, then a repeat of 'The Big Sleep', and finally to what you see now. This isn't my favorite episode, but I do have something good planned for the next one!**

 **ShadowJcreed: And by the end of this episode, there will be unlucky number 13!**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: Thank you, I tried...I think. Chloe and Timothy may be official, but they still have a rocky road ahead of them. Hunter has become a fun character to write for that exact reason. And here you go, the next chapter!**

 **AZW330: I actually like the long reviews because they go more into depth about what you guys like about the story and stuff. Originally, Timothy and Chloe weren't gonna get together until much later, but I decided 'naw, I don't like that', and so you have this. There are actually a lot of really interesting conspiracy theorists, thing is that they have just become a stereotype for stupidity, same with people with Southern accents, y'know? And who knows, maybe they will make a pact, maybe they won't...? The old Hunter is gone, welcome this new Hunter. And thank you for the kind words! 2 more down, 14 to go. Also, making Clifford's childhood story up was semi-difficult only because I wanted it to be so sadistic for him, I was thinking about Silva's entrance in the James Bond movie 'Skyfall', actually. Oh! By the way, I have all the challenges except two, both of those are the last couple episodes. And thank you again!**

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare: RIP to both of them. And who knows, maybe she will, maybe she won't...?**

* * *

What I Deserve

If this were any other day, the lives of these contestants would wake to the horizon shining over the hills, and shine on the faces of all original twenty-four contestants.

However, that isn't so much the case it is anymore, now, it was the sound of rain colliding with the windows that woke them up. Usually, the rain did sound peaceful, but now, it was just a sound of malice.

On the dock of Paspinêw Island, Clifford Lane held his umbrella above his head, letting the droplets of rain slide down, and splash into the water below.

"Previously on Total Drama Zenith, two pathetic souls were taken into what I like to call a 'Kill Chamber'. A new love was started between star-crossed lovers, and a possible alliance between Erica and Jade.

"And yet another between Emily and Eduardo, and one doomed to fail. And I think it would be clear it is all pure hatred.

"People die every day, and yet all of these teens don't seem to realize that. And some don't seem to understand life is just a gift, one of those being Kevin.

"However, it was Daisy who found two of the possible victims, and let Marisa's life drain away. Another worthless life, forgotten in a world of difference.

"Now, only fourteen of these minors remain, but soon, those numbers will dwindle down to unlucky number thirteen. Who will be the next odd one out? Find out on an all brand new episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

The word 'gloom' was rarely ever used in present day. It was a word used for only darkness, a good definition for this island.

This game that they were playing, or whatever it was, it's become survival of the fittest.

It was almost cold-blooded to any one of the contestants to hear the sound of helicopter rotors whirring as it sat itself down in the same place Dylan and the others had tried escaping.

Not only was it malicious, it was ironic as well. It was a AgustaWestland AW109, a search and rescue helicopter. Though it would never be remembered as either of those things.

On the self-made landing pad, Clifford took one, two, three steps back, and ignoring the gust of water flying into his face.

The wheels touched down against one of the only concrete structures on the island, and it was only then that gravity seemed to have caught up with it.

It seemed to have shook slightly upon touching the ground, but it was something that would always be done. It is, after all, the law of gravity.

Like most helicopters, the door was solid metal. Nothing would budge it, and nothing probably ever will. The rain seemed to have reflected a light of a stainless steel, almost as if that of a silver refrigerator.

Whoever was inside was going to have to wait. The pilot seemed to have found the handle on the pilot door, and pushed himself through into the horrendous weather that the residents had gotten used to.

"We have a bit of a problem, sir." The man claimed in a heavy American accent.

It was something that forced Clifford to raise an eyebrow. Swinging his eyes to the portal in the center of the helicopter.

The sadist instantly knew who the man was who slid the device open. He was an observer, a mercenary. But he certainly didn't look the part, and it was for that reason that Clifford chose him.

He was wearing a long tan overcoat with a gray suit, and black tie. His shoes didn't seem to go well with the dirt, but what did he care? They were just clothes he was going to wash off again and again.

He was pale, and he only looked even more so from this...place he was standing.

For a mercenary he was quite thin, and his black hair drooping only slightly over his left eye. But even still, it was only his bangs.

His name is Aleksandr Grinik. He isn't Russian. In fact, he would probably kill you with a quick neck snap if you called him 'soviet prick'.

Actually, he was born in Slovenia to a Ukrainian father, and a Romanian mother.

"Aleks!" Clifford exclaimed, rotating his umbrella in his hand, it was a sign that meant either one of two things. He was annoyed, or thrilled. Grinik determined that it was the latter.

"We had a minor setback in L.A., Mr. Lane." Grinik spoke, as if his voice were a knife cutting through sliced butter.

"And what is it that this is about?" Clifford asked, lowering his free hand into his coat pocket. His fingers tapped against the umbrella, as if daringly.

"Your associate, Mallory Graves, he was killed by the detective."

Clifford raised an eyebrow. "He's dead? Well, that's a shame."

"You aren't mad?" Grinik noticed Clifford's hand leave his coat pocket.

"No, why would I be? He's done his part as best he could!" Lane exclaimed, spinning his umbrella in his hand.

Grinik shoved his hands into his own pockets. "And what is it I should do?"

"The same thing you've been doing: keep your eye on our little friend."

The observer paused for a moment. He didn't understand his employer. He understood all of the ones he had had before, but Clifford? No, there is something different about him. Now, he doesn't approve what Clifford is doing, but it isn't his place either.

It doesn't seem Clifford really cares at all about death. As if it's just an element of life to him. Either way, he is sadistic, intelligent, and a psychopath, three traits that never go well together.

Grinik entered the helicopter, and slid the door back into place. Within moments, the AW109 was back in the air, and started off through the storm.

Clifford folded his free hand behind his back as he watched the helicopter disappear. Even as he did, he felt the presence of Harvey behind him and waited for him to speak.

"Was it really necessary to kill Marisa like that? I would hardly call that fair."

"Why do you say that?" Clifford asked, turning on his heel to look Harvey in the eye, "Or were you hoping to finger the bitch?"

The sadist seemed to glide past the contemplator, and leaving the intern to glare at the man he couldn't touch.

He'd seen enough of what Clifford was putting these minors through. He had to find Dandy, he was the one figuring out where this island was.

He felt his hand dip into his pocket, and his fingers wrap around what he claimed was his wallet. Lifting it to his eyes, he flipped open to look at his Interpol badge, letting his hand glaze over the metal piece.

He couldn't be caught. He didn't know where Dandy was, but if he got cold feet and escaped himself, then he would have to finish his job. It was rather insulting, actually. The only people on this island that knew where they were is Clifford and St. Clarence. So with Graves gone, that does make this so much more difficult.

"Come on, Harvey, don't give up on this mission."

He forced the badge back down into his pocket, and continued on with whatever it was this next horrific challenge was going to be.

* * *

It really is always interesting to watch the sun rise above the horizon. At least, a good portion of the time.

For these people on this island, all it meant was another innocent life was going to fade from existence.

And for those sadists, it meant that it was another thrill ride of 'fun'.

For the past hour or so, it was Eduardo that had been up in his room, writing in a notebook to give to Emily. Manipulation has become something that was rather hard to come by, Eduardo was smart enough to know that.

But in order to manipulate her, he would have to make it seem as genuine as possible.

Fake blackmail, sprung into his mind, problem is that it does have to look real. With that done, he would have immunity, and everyone's attention would be focused on Emily, yet only if he played his cards right.

His thoughts remained in other places as a series of door openings could be heard, and footsteps walking down the hallway.

Daisy felt guilty for what she had done. She killed Marisa. It was her fault that she was dead. None of these people deserved to die, and Marisa was only one of them.

Her interest seemed to pique when she caught Chloe step through the door from her room.

Seeing her caused a flood of grief hit her even harder. It felt gut-wrenching, and it made her heart pump, thrusting her legs forward until her feet seemed to slip from beneath her, and only became satisfied when they saw that she had her hand grip around Chloe's throat, and slammed her into the door.

"You sold us out, didn't you?!" Daisy asked, getting straight to the point, and pressing the shorter girl further against the door.

"Sold you out? I didn't!" Chloe shouted, grabbing at Daisy's wrist as she began to feel herself drift away into unconsciousness.

"Don't lie to me! I know you did something, a deal with Clifford, perhaps?"

She couldn't even respond. She attempted to answer, but only to choke out a gasp of air.

It was only then that Daisy's senses seem to catch up with her, and she released Chloe, letting her fall to the ground, as she felt herself teeter away, her knees suddenly feeling like jelly, and fell to the ground, leaning on the wall opposite of the conspiracy theorist.

Chloe sucked in a deep breath of air, wrapping her arms around herself defensively. "Maybe this is what I deserve." She muttered, pressing her head against her door.

Daisy made no effort to comfort or ask the girl what she meant. She wasn't sure what to do.

Chloe steadily lifted herself to her feet, keeping her back pressed against the door as she did. "Yeah, this is what I deserve."

"Deserve what?" Daisy finally heard herself ask. It was something she wanted to pull back into silence, but she couldn't. But it was already too late for that.

"I deserve to die." Chloe choked, rubbing her eye with her sleeve.

"Please, no one here deserves to die." Daisy couldn't help but scoff.

Chloe let herself slide back down the door, laying herself back across from Daisy.

"Daisy, I swear, I didn't tell Clifford anything." She felt herself stumble on her words, remembering what Clifford had asked her to do.

He wanted her to kill Timothy then, but was his thirst for blood filled when Kevin killed himself?

"Then why didn't you come with us?" Daisy challenged, crossing her arms, and narrowing her eyes into a glare. "You or Timothy?"

"It was just a feeling I had." Chloe felt herself being backed into a corner, hugging her legs to her chest.

"Then why didn't you tell the rest of us?"

It came as a question she wasn't expecting. Her relationship with Timothy, yes. But not that.

"I don't know." She answered honestly, sniffing slightly.

"Bullshit. You knew something, just what is it?" Daisy tilted her head, examining the conspiracy theorist closer.

She didn't know how to respond. And rather then doing so, she felt herself stand back up against her door, her back scraping against the wood.

Once she was back at her normal height, she felt her hand reach around to the back of the door, and opened it.

So before Daisy knew it, Chloe had disappeared back into her room.

Then seconds passed, and Daisy found herself walking back downstairs.

Soon, those seconds turned into minutes. And those minutes turned into what felt like hours.

But the only person that found it unusual that her door was still closed as he walked by was Timothy.

Like it was with Chloe a few nights ago, he had a gut feeling telling him to check on her.

And he was very right to do so.

Because when he creaked the door open, he saw Chloe sitting at her window, her legs dangling freely below. Her hands were settled on the side of the ledge.

The distance between her window and the ground was about ten feet. The average distance to break her spine, and yet the same distance that would've killed Kevin, had he jumped out.

"Chloe?" She heard a voice asked. She forced herself to suck in a breath as she heard her door click shut behind her. "What're you doing?"

"Please, Timothy," the theorist grumbled, tilting her head to look only slightly back at her boyfriend, "I need to do this."

"What? No!" Timothy took a step closer to the girl, who, in return, slid herself inches off the ledge.

"Please stop!" He begged, holding his hands in front of him.

"This is what I deserve. I shouldn't deserve to live. You deserve better."

"Chloe, no, this isn't you." He begged even further, feeling his knees wobble underneath him, causing him to collapse to the carpeted floor.

"Then I don't know who I am anymore." She bent her legs, placing her feet on the cabin wall, forcing herself inches further out the window.

"I know who you are." Timothy attempted to reassure, he didn't know what to do. "Chloe, you are an amazing girl. Please don't leave me."

Chloe heaved in another breath. He couldn't see her face in all of this, but that seemed to be for the best. They doubted that either of them would be able to look at each other.

"This is what I deserve." She repeated, looking at the ground below that she felt would be appealing, should she force herself out of the window.

Timothy forced himself to sit straight up on his knees. "I love you, more than it is possible to put into words. Please think about this!"

She paused. She really seemed to think about what she was doing.

Timothy's heart pounded in both fear and hope. He couldn't do anything then try talking his girlfriend down and out if it.

And his heart seemed to return to its usual optimism when Chloe swung her legs back around the window, twisting her body so that she was facing Timothy. Her eyes were stained red from the tears she had shed following her confrontation with Daisy.

The theorist jumped off the window ledge and into Timothy's open arms, feeling herself as she began to sob into his shoulder.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry!" She sobbed, clutching Timothy tightly. All she wanted was forgiveness. She felt his hand softly stroking through her hair.

"It's okay. It's okay." It was all he said, and softly, yet with a shade of hope shining in his eyes. "I don't think I could bear to lose you."

Chloe forced herself off of Timothy, looking into his eyes, sniffing and wiping her sleeve on her eyes.

"Daisy thinks I sold the group out to Clifford." She admitted to him.

"Don't think about that now. All that matters is that you're okay." He replied, bringing his hands to her cheeks and cupping her face.

"I love you." They said in unison. With that said, it was Chloe that swung her arms around his neck and forced her lips to his in a hard kiss, and yet forcing both of them to the floor.

* * *

Chloe and Timothy sat themselves down at their table, both of them earning curious looks from the rest of their team.

"Glad you could finally join us." Clifford picked at his nails, only looking up when the couple entering the room. He himself stood at the center of each table.

To avoid the look that they were in a relationship, they both avoided eye contact with each other, both settling themselves down at their table. None of them seemed to notice Chloe discreetly smoothing out her hoodie and jeans.

Behind Clifford was the board, the pictures of dead contestants that Brendan put up…or maybe it was Harvey?

In order from the start to end, it was Krystal's electric chair death. Travis's crushed skull. Jerome sticking out of a wood chipper. Ted with a hook in his mouth. Jack with his head missing. Jewel with a group of insects in her internal network.

Now, there were four new photos.

It felt so long ago Elsie was killed by the snake. You'd think it would've been a venomous bite, but no. It was a slow, and long strangulation.

The poor girl's life seemed to have drained away. Her face was pale, and her eyes frozen, with her hands gripped around the snake, unable to pry it off.

The next one over was one everyone wasn't used to yet. Dylan was lying in a pool of his own blood, his eyes still open with a look of shock he had just been able to register.

It was a good shot, one would have to admit. It was a bullet to the head, right between his eyes. At least it was a quick and painless death, one he hadn't felt.

Then there was Kevin, lying nude in a bathtub overflowing with red water, stained with the crimson color from his wounds.

One of his arms had hung over the tub, his eyes closed in an almost peaceful manner. It didn't take much a genius to notice the knife on the ground next to him. He must've dropped it after his life ended.

The final and most recent picture was that of Marisa, in a closed off room with her head lying against the ground. Blood on the glass she slammed her hand against. Some of that blood remained on her hand.

She was lying sprawled out on the floor. If her hair we're blood, one could believe she cracked her head on the stone floor. Of course, everyone already knows the truth.

In her eyes was that of hopelessness and fear. And yet acceptance. She wanted to survive, but she accepted that she had no way of surviving, at least in her final moments.

"How do you get more and more fucked up every time we see you?" Lizzy asked, almost seeming used to the corpses on the board.

"Is that your opinion?" Clifford asked, his smile never fading.

"No, it's a fact."

Clifford cocked his head to the side, bouncing on his toes slightly. "Let me ask all of you a question. Do you control your opinions?"

"Obviously." Emily scoffed.

"But you don't. You're always being told what you should think. By the media. By your friends. By the ones you love. Isn't it all just another level of manipulation?"

"Now you sound like Chloe." Lizzy jabbed her thumb in the said girl's direction, who shrunk into her hoodie.

Lane shrugged. "But you can't deny it isn't true."

There was a series of small looks and glances around each table. They couldn't deny that Clifford did have a point.

"Why are you telling us this?" It was Roxie who asked, extending her hands against the table.

"Because it is my opinion that what I am doing to all of you isn't what you think of as 'terrible', I think of it as 'fun'!"

Lizzy growled at the sadist. "Before you put us through another of your sick game, can we get something to eat?"

"No. I'd think you would prefer not to.." Was the answer, barely looking at the girl. "Now, I would like to even all of these teams out, so, two of you, please join the Vipers' table."

The Phoenixes exchanged glances. Which one of themselves were they going to lose?

"And, those people are Emily, and Daisy."

It came as a shock for everyone. All eyes seemed to be on either the loner, or the girl scout. And it was both of those girls that slowly stood up from the table they were at, and forced themselves to sit down with their new team.

"Now that we're all situated," Clifford began, beginning to lean on his umbrella, "how about we start your next challenge?"

* * *

Even as the group walked, none of them could help but feel the presence of malevolence stalking them at every turn.

No matter where they would go, someone would be watching them. At any part of the day, you could die. Either it be by the wrath of your mind, or the mutilation of your body.

You'd think that they would get a break, but you'd be wrong. You would always be wrong. Because by the end of the day, Death is always hungry for another victim.

But who was it going to be this time?

They didn't know where Clifford was taking them, nor did they really care. Everywhere on this island was the same.

Thing is, there are only some places no one ever wanted to see. And maybe that was why they were going to the execution cabin?

No, wait, that's wrong.

They were going someplace else. The same place where Jewel was killed!

Christ, isn't this only getting better and better?

"W-where're we going?" Mickey shyly, and quietly asked, almost just above the sound of a whisper.

It was a question directed to Clifford, who stood mere feet away from the teenage child, bringing his hand to his ear, as if telling him to speak up.

There was silence, rather than Mickey's words. Only the sound of rain splattering against both the dirt and gravel, simulating a similar sound to one another.

The teen took a step closer to Clifford and rose his voice only slightly. "Um, I was just wondering what we were doing here?" He repeated in a slightly different questioning format.

"I'm glad you asked, Mickey." Clifford smirked, although no one was able to see it. But it was almost like they could hear it.

But there really wasn't an answer. Instead, Clifford remained silent afterwards, and continued to lead the two teams on to the next challenge.

Fate.

Fate is what brought all of them together for this damn show. Not luck, but fate.

Maybe it was their destiny to die here?

No, no it isn't. All that is is the hopelessness talking. It isn't their destiny to die here. Destiny isn't real. It isn't such a thing called 'destiny'. All it is is an idea. A philosophy.

His umbrella was wide open, forcing the drops to glide off into the soil below. His feet seemed to lock down, and it was only then that they realized that this was where the next challenge was.

The contestants walked past Clifford and they started to see a place they haven't completely comprehended in the past.

They were wrong in thinking that this was just the same area Jewel was killed. No, that wasn't right.

Instead, they were forced to look over the ledge of a cliff. It looked to be the same cliff the first challenge had been located.

They had to admit it, however, it wasn't a very large cliff. From one side of the ledge, the water would be deep. But then then, it was only a quick swim back to shore.

Clifford must've had a staircase built in since the first challenge because the cliff side looked to be carved specifically to seem that way, allowing anyone a quick walk up or down.

"I want all of you to return here in thirty minutes. That means you all have thirty minutes to dress into a swimsuit. No questions, please."

As he spoke, his smile never faded as he stared down into the water.

They had to take notice, though. And when it was raining, it didn't really ever seem to have any effect on the ocean around the island. All the rain seemed to do was implement fear and terror into the teens' minds.

All of the contestants seemed to look on with worry at Clifford, all of them beginning to step away and make their return back to the cabin.

However, one of those people wasn't Hunter. He seemed lost and looked on with guilt. If there was anyone who wanted to kill Clifford, it would be Hunter to take the cake.

Because what he did the other night wasn't something that could ever fade.

* * *

 _Flashback to Twisted Chain_

 _Kevin shuddered as be heard footsteps approaching his room. Clifford must've seen him grab the knife._

 _Slowly, he rose the knife above his head with shaky hands. The moment Clifford entered this room, that knife was going into his chest._

 _Or, that was what he wanted, at least. Kevin wasn't skilled, or had the ability to take someone's life. Injure, maybe. But not kill._

 _And he was wrong at thinking it was Clifford. The steps walked right past his room, and he heard them fade slowly._

 _He lowered the knife once reality seemed to catch up with him, and he steadily opened the door._

 _Quickly, the boy peeked around the corner just in time to see Hunter enter Marisa's room._

 _He waited for what felt like hours for the kleptomaniac to leave the room. And when he did, Marisa was folded over his shoulder._

 _Something seemed to have built up in him, and he softly pressed himself against the wall. Of course, the one factor Kevin had completely forgotten about was the most important._

 _His own open door._

 _Because when he heard Hunter step just by the door, Kevin charged from around the corner and showed a threat to stab him._

 _Of course, it failed horribly._

 _Kevin wasn't at all trained in hand-to-hand combat, and he didn't know what he was supposed to do with a knife when he wanted to hurt someone._

 _So all he did was swing it uselessly in front of him in the hope the blade would catch Hunter._

 _So when Hunter grabbed him by the wrist and spun him around, holding his neck with his forearm, he was taken by pure surprise._

 _Kevin had grown to like Marisa. Not to the point where he would sacrifice himself for her, but to the point where she was close enough as a friend._

 _But all of Kevin's thoughts vanished when Hunter twisted his arms, and snapping Kevin's neck. He died instantly._

 _The boy's brain had begun to shut down, and his grip on the knife began to loosen._

 _Within moments, the knife was on its way to the ground, and it ended with a loud clattering sound._

 _Minutes had seemed to have passed, but those minutes had been productive._

 _Hunter dragged Kevin's body back into his room, slipping the knife into his back pocket should he find a reason to use it._

 _The kleptomaniac then dragged Marisa's body into the room, and shut the door behind them._

 _There seemed to be a reason for everything, and the reason for him bringing in Marisa was only so she didn't wake up out of his view, or someone waking up and walking into the hallway._

 _Be that as it is, Hunter still had to think quick to cover up the murder. And he settled on something after a minute of thought._

 _Quickly, he had undressed the boy and started his bathtub._

 _Once it had been filled to a portion, he lowered Kevin's body inside, and used the knife to slice his wrists._

 _All he needed was for it to look like a suicide. And it did._

 _He placed the knife on the tiled floor, and left the bathroom, shutting the door behind him, and continued on his way for Clifford's challenge._

* * *

"You seem happy." Alexei had noticed, stepping out of his room and crossing his arms in the hope of heating himself up.

Lizzy looked back over her shoulder, feeling the edge of her lips tug upwards into a smile. "What can I say? If I die, I think I'd prefer it to be after swimming."

She allowed him to join her, walking next to her as they went to the same location. He felt that it was hard to believe that a girl like Lizzy could still be nice underneath all of what she's shown herself to be.

"So you like swimming?" Alexei asked at an awkward attempt to make conversation.

"If that wasn't obvious." Lizzy answered, circling around the stair railing, Alexei trailing just behind her.

"Sorry." He apologized, and it seemed that it had made Lizzy turn around to face him in return.

"Alexei, stop. Talking. To. Me. I don't care about you, so stop trying to be my friend. Are we clear?"

The hiker seemed confused, and only being forced to stare at the back of Lizzy's head as she sauntered off.

* * *

"What'd you want?" Emily impatiently tapped her foot in the center of the hallway, taking in the seen of Eduardo attempting to lock pick Dylan's room.

"Señorita, I believe our Dylan friend was the leader of the little alliance."

"The ones that tried to escape?"

"What others?" Eduardo asked, feeling the door click open. "And the door has been opened." He attempted a smile that looked awfully fake. Of course, Emily didn't pay attention to him, pushing past him and into the room, with Eduardo close behind.

The duo scanned over the room once the door had been shut. They took in all of the building designs Dylan had drawn. For a teen, they had to admit that he was a damn good architect.

But it wasn't the pictures that drew Emily's attention. Rather, it was his desk. And she found herself slowly approaching it until finally, her arm gripped around the drawer handle, and pulled it open.

More blueprints.

They seemed to be so delicate and precise. As if the smallest of movements could destroy all of the work Dylan had been attempting.

Of course, none of this work of his mattered anymore.

The loner couldn't help but get a better look at the blueprints, picking them up and holding them to her eye and looking at them, trying to make out whatever it was Dylan was drawing.

"Dylan had more than one plan." She concluded, turning away from the piece of paper, and to look at Eduardo.

The wannabe charmer himself was looking at a photo of Dylan wand what seemed to be his father. Someone that he recognized.

"Does he look familiar to you?" He asked, pointing at the photo.

Emily was much better at names then the average person. The person in the photo seemed to come up in a database full of names within her head. But then, only one name identified the man.

"That's Jason Forrest." Emily replied, looking back down at the blueprints to continue reading them over as best she could. "Seventh richest person in the world. Has his own supercomputer. And an all around douchebag."

"Oh, do tell how you know so much about him." Eduardo placed the photo back where it was, looking to Emily.

"Because he was all over the news a few months back. Called a kid kid with Asperger's a 'retard'." Emily muttered in annoyance, not looking up at Eduardo once during the conversation.

"Okay. So, why do you think Dylan had a picture with him?" Eduardo asked, turning away from the photo and back to Emily.

"Maybe because he's his dad?" Emily suggested, holding up the blueprints. In the corner of the page, Eduardo was able to make out Dylan's signature.

'Dylan Forrest.'

* * *

Irina walked back down to where the challenge was to take place, holding her head in pain. It was a migraine, or something.

She felt that she would collapse at any second. That was until she saw Nebiros leaning on a tree, staring at her with what seemed like empty eyes.

"Why don't you take a break, Irina? Haven't you been through enough?"

"It isn't my choice, Nebiros." Irina felt herself respond, running a hand through her hair as she stood up straight, continuing along the path.

"But what if it was?" His voice echoed in her ear. Just a moment ago, he was leaning on a tree, and the next, he was right at her side.

Irina stopped herself, looking Nebiros in the eye. "Then I would be grateful."

Nebiros groaned. "You don't understand! Haven't you suffered enough?"

The puppeteer finally stopped and dropped to her knees. She felt her hands rise to her head and holding it desperately. "I don't know anymore."

"Irina!" His voice echoed in her ear once more. "Me, or you." He said without explanation. He felt himself twist within her head, his form beginning to fade and reappear in different areas of her vision.

"I don't understand-"

"Me or you!" He pressured further, dropping to his own knees in front of Irina.

"Nebiros, what do you mean-"

"Me or you!" His hands gripped the sides of her head, forcing her to look into his eyes once more. His stare seemed menacing to anyone. Even Irina.

"You!" Irina cried at last, and when she did, she felt her neck twitch to the side, her eyes staring straight at the sky as something new entered her body.

Irina and Nebiros were one.

* * *

Mickey, Erica, and Daisy were on their way to the challenge location. And trailing behind them was Timothy and Chloe, the latter attempting to warm herself from the cold weather.

"You okay?" He asked with concern, looking down at the shorter girl. He wanted to forget what happened earlier that morning, but he still couldn't let it go.

"I'm fine." She murmured, looking straight ahead of them. "I still can't believe the mistake I almost made."

"Chloe, it's in the past. It doesn't matter." He assured.

"I'd hardly call twenty minutes ago 'in the past'." Chloe couldn't help but chuckle, a smile growing back onto her face. A smile that triggered Timothy's own signature grin.

"You're such a jerk." Timothy joked, beaming at the shorter girl.

Chloe forced herself to stop smiling. Of course, it didn't exactly work out like she wanted. Raising her fist, she softly punched Timothy's shoulder.

Ahead of them, the duo wasn't aware that Daisy, Erica, and Mickey were having a conversation of their own.

"Another rebellion?" Erica whispered, repeating what Daisy had just told her. "You do remember how well that went for us last time, don't you?"

"I'm not ready to give up." Daisy scowled, shooting a sideways glance at Mickey, who had remained silent during this entire conversation.

"What about you?" Daisy asked, directing her question past Erica. "What do you think?"

"I don't know." Mickey whispered quietly. He had been forced to watch Dylan get his brains blown out, there was a good chance Mickey wasn't going to take the chance.

Before Daisy could say another word, Erica whirled around in front of her, gripping her by her shoulders. "You need to calm down. The stress of this game is getting to you, and so is Dylan. You need to forget about what happened then, and move forward."

"How can I forget any of this, Erica? Dylan was helping us. And now he's dead."

"Forget about it, Daisy. There's only so much we can do. If it's closure you're looking for, look to the person who killed him."

With that said, Erica and Mickey were in their way. As they walked, Daisy took a deep breath, calming herself.

What was she doing? This isn't her at all!

Erica is right, isn't it obvious?

But there is a question she does want answered: why did Hunter shoot Dylan?

* * *

"Well, it is about time." Clifford smirked, his hands folded neatly behind his back. In front of him on the side of the cliff was all of the fourteen remaining cast members.

Oh, how satisfying it would be to see someone lunge at Clifford and shove him off this cliff. Of course, that wouldn't ever happen. Not with these many armed people around.

In the water, about thirty feet from the shore was a wooden platform that had been set up, and then fourteen steel grates, seven for each team member.

It looked like a good foot above the water, enough, and plenty room for anyone to breathe.

"You're challenge involves all of you trying not to drown. Because every thirty minutes," he pointed to the grates, "three inches will be no more. The tide rises, and all you have to do is not drown, so...the team that still has someone on the grate wins, and the others gets to execute someone. Sound like fun?"

* * *

All it took was just a few minutes each of the fourteen remaining contestants to jump into the water, and swing their arms in a way that brought them closer to the grates.

Already on the platform, Brendan held a loose grate, pulling his head straight up to look at the sky, and brought his mouth between the grate. He was showing what these contestants were supposed to do.

As much as none of them wanted to do this, it isn't like they had much of a choice. One by one, and without complaint, they found themselves underneath the grates, holding their head to the edge of the grate.

"This isn't a challenge, this is a nuisance." Lizzy complained, looping her arms around the bars.

Jace scoffed. "This is easy!"

Of course it would seem easy at first. But will always change. Change every ten minutes when the tide rose an inch, destroying their ability to breathe.

"When Clifford said to get our bathing suits, this isn't what I had in mind." Jade found herself speaking through irritation.

From the coast, Clifford kept binoculars to his eyes, allowing himself to watch everything that this challenge held for them. And though he had to admit it was a slow challenge, he had to admit that it would be thrilling to see these people try not to drown once the tide did come in.

No words were spoken since the start. Everyone was focused. They were not going to lose this challenge.

Of course, all things are forced to change, however.

All it took was time.

And within thirty minutes, three inches of the foot decreased, leaving only nine inches remaining between the fresh air, and the water.

"This has got to be the single most boring thing I have ever done." Emily grumbled, forcing her hands through the bars to help keep herself up.

From the coast, Clifford himself seemed to be bored with how this challenge was going. Wouldn't it have been so much more fun to tie them to the grates when they were already underwater? Perhaps sometime in the future.

Soon an hour had passed, leaving breathe space three inches between the water and grate. What Jace thought was easy so long ago was very clearly wrong because he found himself raising his mouth to take in as much air as he could. His jaw fitting just slightly between the bars of the grate.

It was this challenge that found Hunter repeatedly telling himself to remain calm. But even as he did, he wasn't going to be the first one to give up on this challenge.

As it turns out, that person was Mickey. The teenage child had to force himself away from the grate, coughing and spluttering out water that he accidentally swallowed in.

"Looks like Mickey's given up already." Clifford muttered from the coast, not looking away from his favorite part of this entire challenge.

Mickey crawled up onto the platform beside Brendan, who hadn't paid attention to him once he had crawled on.

It was six to seven. But everyone knows that score will be changing sooner rather than later.

The water continued to rise, and a wave of what seemed like panic hit a certain contestant, pushing herself away from her grate and whipping her hair back and out of her face.

Although Lizzy wasn't able to see much more of Clifford's figure from where she was floating at, she couldn't help but stick her middle-finger high in the air so Clifford could see.

Six to six.

Eduardo found himself cupping his hands around his mouth to force out water, and force air in. A trick he had noticed Alexei, Timothy, Chloe, and Daisy doing.

This wasn't the worst challenge they had faced, but they had to admit that it was getting close to it. It was so simple, and yet so brutal.

It almost seemed like a game of ping-pong at seeing the score drop, and then the other team drop. All it did was make them even again. So when Jade had to drop out, heaving in a deep breath as she pushed away from the grate, it seemed like this was exactly the case.

The savant found herself joining Lizzy and Mickey, right on time to hear Lizzy ask her a question.

"Waves suck, don't they?"

Jade paused for a moment, thinking back to her brief time in the water before she nodded in agreement.

Five to six.

Despite that the Phoenixes looked to be losing this challenge, they had to remind themselves that they still had Erica on their team, probably the most useful asset in the team.

But they couldn't say the same for Roxie, coughing out water as she pushed herself away from the spot she forced herself underneath.

No words were spoken between anyone and Roxie as she crawled up onto the platform. She almost looked defeated as she pushed water away from her eyes.

Four to six.

The water was rising. Lizzy found herself impressed that Eduardo had managed to keep himself in this game for as long as he has been.

There was no more use for the cups around their mouths. Almost all of the members of the Vipers had to take a breath of air before plugging their noses with their fingers. It was probably the best chance they did have.

But Emily didn't seem to get the memo, spitting out a small stream of water upon going up for what felt like actual air.

Four to five.

Clifford continued to watch with intrigue. He had his own ideas on who the next to go was.

The last three inches had been decreased to zero by the flow of the tide. The water of the ocean going above the grate. People will be dropping out like flies now.

Chloe was the next one to go. She almost drowned once, she decided that going through it again wouldn't be so appealing.

As the theorist pulled herself onto the platform, she realized it was only then that teams were tied.

Four to four.

No, four to three.

Eduardo had finally given up on the challenge. He reached passed the expectations of others, and if his team lost again, then he would be safe from excelling.

Irina was the next one to push away. Or maybe it was Nebiros?

Whoever it was didn't matter to them, to them, all that mattered was that the teams were once again tied.

Three to three.

Those numbers was about to change drastically.

The tide kept pushing the water further and further up. It was only so much harder to breathe. In just a few minutes, their entire head would be forced underwater, and the only way out would be to give up.

Four people gave up at once. Jace and Hunter shot up, the former of them coughing from the amount of water he had to take in.

And then Timothy and Daisy followed. Both the Phoenixes and Vipers looked to be on the edge of their seats between the two remaining contestants left.

None of them wanted to go back to execute someone. But the way this game was forcing them to be, one of them would have to lose.

It was one to one.

Erica didn't seem to have moved since the challenge began. Alexei, on the other hand, had, yet only slightly, panicked once. When the water was too much, flowing in over the grates.

Neither of them could breathe at this point. All they could do was hold their breath for as long as possible.

What was actually minutes turned into what felt like hours. The normally calm girl that was Erica felt herself start to panic for the first time in a very, very long time.

It took everyone by surprise when it was Erica who came up for air instead of Alexei. But only moments later he was forced to come up, but by the time he did, he was crowned as the winner of this challenge.

"Nicely done." Erica complimented, wiping her hair out of her eyes.

"Looks like they have a winner." Clifford smirked, lowering the binoculars from his eyes, running his thumb over the handle of his umbrella.

Tonight's execution was going to be fun!

* * *

In about an hour, all of the contestants had redressed themselves, and some had taken a shower. They still had a long time until the execution.

The challenge they had been forced into doing was brutal. But some of them had to think, Clifford lost the perfect opportunity to kill one of them. Why didn't he let them die there?

The Phoenixes were the ones to find out the answer to that question. Later tonight, that was.

Emily wasn't done with Eduardo yet. She made that clear after the challenge. She was looking for something else, and that something wasn't in Dylan's room. Rather, it was in Roxie's.

They waited until she stepped into the shower before Eduardo attempted to open the door.

What they saw was the exact thing they thought they would find. Portraits of nature, animals, and world peace stole up most of the walls.

Emily didn't care about any of that. Instead, it was a notebook lying on her desk. She flipped it open with ease, and grabbed at the corner of one page she selected at random. In seconds, the piece of paper was no longer in the book, and rather, it was in Emily's hand.

The sound of water hitting the floor of the bathtub stopped, and it became very clear to both the Intruders that Roxie was done with her shower.

Paying no attention to the bathroom, Emily flipped the notebook closed and spun around, grabbing Eduardo and forcing both of them out of the room just as Roxie opened the door to the bathroom.

* * *

Dinner came rather quickly, actually. The two teams ate at their own tables. And for one of the fourteen contestants, this dinner will be their last.

As Roxie walked past Jace, setting her tray of food down on the table, the shadow couldn't help but notice a sliver of paper fall out of her back pocket.

Before the pharmacist could notice it was missing, Jace promptly bent down to pick it up, opening the paper and reading it quietly to himself.

It only took a moment, but his eyes widened, and he shifted himself to look at the girl sitting next to him.

' _Log #10_

 _I am becoming more and more thrilled with this plan. Jack taught me how to notice the subtle movements, and now I believe I really am controlling this game. My team, however, has still been a nuisance to my planning, and I believe my only hope in everything going well is with Erica's execution._ '

That was all that could be read from the note. There was a long tear along the bottom, and it looks as if Roxie tore it in half and had gotten ready to throw it out.

"What's this?" Jace asked, holding the note up. Roxie rose an eyebrow, but rather then giving it to her, he handed it for Jade to read, allowing her to read it aloud to the table.

"I didn't write that!" Roxie exclaimed once Jade came to the end of the note.

"Then why was it in your pocket?" Jace snapped, staring at the girl in disbelief.

"My pocket?" Roxie repeated, turning to look over her neck and at her back pockets. After seeing nothing was there anymore, she looked desperately back at the rest of her team. All of which have at least seen the note. "I was framed!"

"Looks an awful lot like your handwriting." Hunter recalled. He remembered, back on the plane when they first took off, Roxie was writing in a notebook. He recognized her handwriting from looking over her shoulder during a long portion of the flight.

"That's...I didn't write it!" She was at a loss for words. She had no idea what to say anymore.

"You can tell yourself that for as long as you want, it doesn't make it any less true." Jade glared.

"Phoenixes, report to the execution cabin at once. Thank you." Clifford's voice echoed throughout the island.

There was a moment where everyone was still at that table, and then, within the next, all but one were gone to make a vote.

The Vipers could only watch during all of this. When Roxie finally started off after her team, slouching her shoulders forward, the only person to continue to watch her was Emily, a book open in front of her.

* * *

Each of the seven contestants sat themselves down on the couch. And once all of them were in, Brendan locked the door.

Behind Clifford was what looked like a coffin of sorts. Made of metal, inside it was what looked like hundred of spikes protruding from all sides. The head that had been carved into the top of the device had a chain strapped to a small loop, and again on its back, at the bottom of the device.

Clifford held a platter with six marshmallows, rotating it only slightly in his hand.

"Ah, isn't it great to be back into the flow of things?" The sadist asked, almost spinning the platter on his fingers.

"Well, you all know the drill. The person to not receive a marshmallow is to be executed."

He held the platter down at his chest, letting his fingers take the first marshmallow. "Jade." He spoke, flinging the marshmallow to the savant.

"Erica."

The freerunner caught her marshmallow, and forced herself to not glare at Roxie for what the note said about her.

"Mickey and Hunter."

Mickey happily caught his marshmallow, while Hunter made no effort to catch his, allowing it to bounce harmlessly off his chest.

"Irina."

Said puppeteer tilted her head, allowing the marshmallow to sail past her.

The final two people left were Jace and Roxie. Jace looked calm and collected, tapping his foot against the ground as Roxie seemed to be on the verge of tears.

"Unsurprisingly, Jace."

"Thought so." The shadow spoke, catching his marshmallow, and turning a brief look to Roxie as she stood up.

"Please, just make it quick." It was all she wanted as she placed her hands on her eyes, the sounds of sobs escaping her lips.

Harvey forced the iron maiden open with a key, showing the giant spikes that seemed hungry for the blood of anyone.

Brendan spun Roxie around to face her team, softly moving her hands from her face.

"You'd like it to be quick. Actually, I have better plans." Clifford smirked, nodding to Brendan.

Nodding back at him, the introvert forced Roxie into the iron maiden with as much force he could. It proved effective when the spikes sank through Roxie's body, one emerging from her throat.

The Phoenixes couldn't look anymore. They heard as Brendan shut the doors, allowing the spikes to impale Roxie once more.

She screamed in pain, only slightly muffled by the sound of iron box.

Brendan locked the two doors shut with the key, forcing Roxie to remain inside.

Brendan and Harvey then stepped to one side and out of the way from the maiden. On the wall was a panel, allowing the chains to hold the iron maiden.

Without hesitation, Brendan slammed his hand against the button, resulting in the chains beginning to pull upwards.

Pulling the iron maiden's incredible weight, the chains forced the box sideways, and on the inside, Roxie found herself sliding off the spikes, and into the ones lodged onto the door.

Within just a few seconds, the girl inside was finally dead.

Blood leaked through the maiden, dripping onto the floor.

Clifford smirked at the sight of the iron maiden hanging sideways from the roof. Finally, he turned away, and opened the front door of the cabin.

"And thus, another episode of Total Drama Zenith comes to a satisfying conclusion. Thirteen people remain, yet that number will only keep dwindling until one survivor remains. Who will it be? We'll find out together, but for now, stay tuned for another episode of Total Drama Zenith."


	10. Those Kinds of Things

**AN: YEEEESSSSS! 12,371 words at the time of me typing this, and it only took ten chapters! So, as you can imagine, this took a very long time to write, and I'm still not too sure how it turned out, but fuck it!**

 **Nicky Haugh: Thank you!**

 **TheAllTimeGreatest: Well, to be fair, the detective was mentioned at the beginning of the chapter. Even if that was the only reference to him. And, maybe Emily did pick something up from Jack? Although, I don't recall her being on the same team as him. And, by the end of this chapter, I think you'll have a good idea who the real villain is. Well, besides Clifford, like you said.**

 **ThorBringsTheThunder: I don't know what to say, but YES. Also, I think I did mention it once before, but, Corrow won't appear in EVERY chapter, just a lot of them. I have to give our detective a little break sometimes. And I also see your point about what I said in the reviews, I will keep in mind to not do that again.**

 **ShadowJcreed: Ah, the merge. Here's my question, tell who you think will make it to the merge? I'd like to hear your thoughts.**

 **AZW330: Haha, convenience is convenient! Well, some of those will become plot lines, others were more one time things. And Hunter? Oh, I'm glad I could surprise you! Who even is that guy anymore? One of Clifford's interns, or a contestant? Or perhaps both at the same time! Also, I got that challenge idea from a 'Survivor' episode...I don't actually watch 'Survivor', but it is an actual challenge...but I'll take the compliment, thanks man! And, well, your Chloe/Timothy future may only depend if they both get out alive...keep holding on hope!**

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare: Thank you! And I'm glad you're liking Hunter!**

* * *

Those Kinds of Things

It was a miracle that the shower of raindrops had yet to sink through the cabin roofs yet. Every day, the rain seemed to become more and more aggressive, it's drops only now thumping against the ocean, adding to the ocean more and more, every minute of every day.

But, that is one of the reasons the late Chris McLean selected this island in the first place. It just gave off the mood of this miserable place. Dark, a sense of malice, and covered by death.

Thoughts seemed to circulate around Clifford Lane's head as he stood on the still-sturdy dock of the island, as if tapping his foot against it to see if the wood would finally give in to the rain, and fold in on itself like a piece of paper.

"On the previous episode of Total Drama Zenith, the stress of the game has started a massive pileup on our remaining contestants, those in particular, Lizzy and Daisy.

"Eduardo, believing himself as a schemer, attempted to write up some fake blackmail. Of course, he never handed it over to the person who should be in possession of it, perhaps he doesn't feel he should be a courier?

"Alexei still seems to be trying to find a friend in Lizzy. Of course, at every turn, she just turns him down. I don't believe I can blame him though, it isn't his fault he's so boring!

"And so, when the challenge cane around, it ended in a close game, but even with that having to occur, it was the Vipers who won the challenge. And because they did, the Phoenixes executed pharmacist, Roxie after Emily framed her for a note.

"Quite problematic for our victims, huh? Well, how will their situation become even more desperate on this episode? You'll have to find out this time on Total Drama Zenith!"

* * *

The whir of helicopter blades would never cease to horrify any of the remaining thirteen contestants left.

To some, it gave the impression of false hope.

To others, it would be a mechanical sound, a sound so disgusting from what it sounded like to them.

A rarity of metal banging off itself, which may or may not create a scraping sound. It created a sound that was like that of a wood chipper.

And when the horrible invention is brought to light, the only thing anyone can think of is the poor young man that was Jerome, slowly being eaten away by the chipper, his screams becoming deafened by the infernal machine.

The ones who witnessed it, they could see his death sometimes replay again in their heads. The poor teen sinking into it, his blood spraying every which way, until suddenly, there was no sound at all besides the grinding of the chipper's gears.

It wasn't just Jerome, either. It was each and every death that they had been forced to witness.

Ranging from Travis's, to Jack's, to Jewel's, and, rather more recently, to Dylan. All of those names were those of a few.

But right now, now it was time to dispose those bodies. After all, it was the middle of the season!

Well, if any of this could even be considered a 'season'.

It was one of the first times Clifford hadn't held his umbrella over his head during the ongoing storm.

Instead, the sadist had taken the umbrella in his hand, and stuck it's too into the soil, spinning it with his wrist just to let it dig in even further.

The helicopter softly touched against the ground, it's blades spinning at a tremendous rate, and forcing the water droplets of rain in every direction. It seemed to push the wind back, letting Clifford's coat fly being him as he stood, watching the helicopter slowly slow itself to a stop.

It was a Boeing CH-47 Chinook, a twin-engine, tandem rotor, heavy-lift chopper, and almost looked as if it were specially designed for military personnel.

But to think that, you would only be half right.

As the blades whirred to a halt, Clifford heard Brendan speak from behind him. "Why so many helicopters these last few days?" The so-called 'intern' had asked.

"Well, all sorts of different reasons! Would you like the long version, or the short version?" Clifford rhetorically asked, turning to Brendan, all the while his vicious smile remained, plastered across his lips.

The heavy iron door opened from the back of copter, allowing a slick looking man to slowly step down, fitting white gloves on his hands as he did.

He had a slightly round looking face, his black hair having been slid over the top of his head, as if he were a puppet that had its head painted over.

Not only that, but he wore circular glasses that seemed as if they were trying to escape from him due to the shape of his nose, allowing them to simply slide off his head if he hadn't continuously pushed them back on.

Like some of the others that had been forced to walking along the island, he wore black jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt, with a light gray sweater, it almost looked as if it were supposed to be a winter sweater or something similar.

"Jordan Cage." He introduced himself, trying his best to avoid the mud covered ground. Of course, he could only do his best.

Once he was within arms reach, he offered Clifford his hand, a gesture that Clifford simply seemed to look at before swiftly moving his hand away.

"Nice to meet you too." He spoke honestly, even if he didn't seem that way. He turned around and gestured with his elbow towards three wheelbarrows that Harvey and Brendan had wheeled over prior to the landing.

"I assume I'm a kind of replacement?" Jordan figured, glancing from the wheelbarrows, and to Clifford.

In response, he noticed the subtle nod come from the sadist's head. "Bingo." He spoke. His fingers curled around his umbrella, and forced it out of the ground, allowing himself to take a step closer to the wheelbarrows, allowing Jordan and Brendan to follow behind.

It was then that Jordan realized what was in the wheelbarrows.

The dead bodies of the contestants who were already dead.

Ten bodies of the eleven dead contestants were in those wheelbarrows. It was obvious why one of them was missing, however. There was no body left to dispose of.

Jordan found himself circle around one of the carts, resting his hands on the handles, and begin to push himself along to the chopper, feeling as the wheel cut smoothly through the soft dirt of the earth.

Clifford seemed to gaze as Jordan left them behind, placing his free hand delicately on the rail of another on the carts, stopping Brendan from wheeling it anywhere.

Twisting his head to look down at what one could call a trophy, he let his hand reach to the back of Dylan's head, bringing the corpse off the other bodies, and, if he could still see, to look right at him.

"You...have caused quite the trouble, Mister Forrest." Clifford smirked, bringing his hand to trace the perfect hole in the center of his head.

The blood had dried up only hours after he had died. Yet, it was so fascinating to see the small stains along his head, having dripped down from the wound.

Dylan's brain had shut down in seconds after Hunter fired off that shot. He could still remember it as clear as day. The teen's head snapping back, and an explosion of blood in air from the shot.

It was quite the sight to see. So glorious. Within seconds from each other, Dylan was one of the healthiest people in the room, and then, he became the deceased in the room.

"Hopefully your story can be finally put to rest." Clifford nodded, yet still grinning. Closing his eyes, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to Dylan's forehead, before pulling away, and letting the corpse fall flat back into the wheelbarrow.

Clifford stood up straight, leaning slightly on his umbrella as he watched Brendan begin to move, following Jordan to the helicopter.

Even as the sadist moved away, one hand folded behind his back, and his other resting on handle of his umbrella, he continued forward and back to his main headquarters, he never seemed to notice Harvey staring at him with a mixture of loathing, and distaste.

He had had enough of everything Clifford was doing. Screw the plan. He needed to get these teens off this island _now_.

And with the bringing of this helicopter, he now has an escape plan, not only for himself, but also for the teens that were still left alive.

'So close, Harvey. Today is the day Clifford Lane's world falls apart.'

* * *

She wished she could say that the heat of the sun had woken her up. It should've anyway. That's how life works.

But when you're in a place like this, when is it ever the sun? It almost never is. In a place like this, you should be happy you managed as much sleep as you did.

For Erica, she had been staring at her bedroom ceiling for the last hour or so.

There was no rush to get up. None at all. Even if Clifford started his game around eight in the morning, was there ever a reason to hurry?

They were all dead.

This 'game' was just death row. Death row for the innocent.

The soft of one's knuckles took her out of her thoughts, and for the first time in the last hour, Erica allowed herself to avert her gaze from the ceiling, and to the door.

"Come in." She spoke cooly, her arms crossed, resting on her abdomen.

The door slowly began to creak open, almost as if the handle wasn't needed at all. Who entered the room was one of two people Erica had expected, at least, once she heard the knock.

Jade, the savant, shakily stepped into the room, pressing her back to the door, and moving herself along the carpet, shutting the door without touching it.

She didn't take Roxie's death lightly.

Wasn't that obvious? She still wasn't used to seeing a dead body, nor was she used to voting someone off for Clifford to kill in an unnecessarily brutal way. Who was the last person she saw die, anyway? Who was the last person she helped vote off?

Quietly, the savant slowly found herself walking across the carpet, her feet seemingly sinking into the carpet.

Perching herself on the edge of the bed, Jade stared desperately out the window, ignoring the raindrops splashing against the glass, and keeping her exact focus on the raving ocean waves.

"I'm going to die here, aren't I?" She finally spoke after a long moment of silence, all but twiddling her thumbs.

"You can't give up hope, Jade," Erica retorted, shifting her gaze back to the ceiling. "That's what Clifford would want from you."

"Does it matter, Erica? We're all gonna die at some point." The savant returned, turning back to her. She seemed to acknowledge that Erica hadn't been looking at her, but rather, she continued to lie on her back, and facing the ceiling.

"I suppose that's true." The freerunner shrugged her shoulders. She hated these deaths, and she hated seeing these poor people die. And every time, she seemed calm and collected, as if she didn't care.

That wouldn't be right, however. She did care. Every time she was involved in an execution her heart pounded. None of them were ready to die, who ever is?

What Clifford has been doing this past week or so has been more then screwed up. He is the definition of sadism.

"Don't you care?" Jade found herself scowling, standing up with a glare.

"Of course I care!" Erica countered, "I don't wanna be in this situation, just as much as anyone."

Jade gulped silently, placing her palms on her nose, and forcing her eyes closed. "Then why don't you look like it?"

"It's just something I learned to do," the freerunner answered, turning her head to face the savant. "You need to stay calm, Jade. No matter the situation."

The girl took a heavy breath, removing her hands from the sides of the bed and placing them on the back of her head.

"I don't want to say this, but it is for the best you stay away from me." Erica spoke, finally throwing her legs over the side of the bed, allowing her to sit up straight. "It's for the best. The best for both of us."

The girl scowled, stomping to the door and flinging it open with an anger she didn't she realize she had, treading further down the hallway, holding her arms on her head in such a mixture of emotions.

Erica sighed, dropping her head to the floor of the room, letting everything what just happened sink in. Why does it feel like this situation got only so much worse now?

* * *

'I guess Roxie wasn't the person I thought she was.'

That was the thought that had been going through Mickey's mind as he dressed himself into his regular clothes.

During the execution, Mickey was the one to take the death the hardest. Roxie had become something of an big sister to him, and it hurt him to see her die.

Whatever it was that note claimed, it wasn't Roxie. It couldn't be! That isn't her!

Alas, it doesn't matter anymore whatever she really was. She wasn't breathing anymore. She wasn't alive anymore. She's gone, and she's never coming back.

Steadily, Mickey opened his door, letting his innocent eyes wander all around the hallway. He could make the out Jade's figure start down the stairs, and even if he wasn't aware that she was very clearly angry, he would never be able to see it.

"You okay?" He heard the soft voice coming from behind. Soft and caring. It only reminded him further of Roxie.

Looking over his shoulder, he could see Erica's figure, almost looming over him. Or maybe it was just in his mind?

"You don't seem like it." She responded, placing her hand on his shoulder. He almost burst into tears right then and there.

The teenage child spun around and hugged Erica tight, taking the freerunner by complete surprise.

"I'm sorry." She muttered quietly to him, wrapping her own hands around him. Why did she feel it was her fault Roxie was dead? Maybe they did jump to conclusions too fast. Maybe she was innocent after all.

'It doesn't matter.' She had promptly decided. No, she would have to protect Mickey. It only seemed right, especially now. Now that his sister figure was gone.

How long they stood there will probably never be remembered, but what is is the decisions that both teens had circulate around their mind.

Pulling herself away from him, Erica let her hand wrap around his, holding it up to both their eyes. "I won't let anyone hurt you, Mickey." She found herself promising.

It was quite the predicament, isn't it?

How much different would any of this be had she let Mickey drown during the very first challenge? Would Roxie still be alive? Maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe it would've always played out this way.

As Mickey and Erica edged towards the end of the hallway, neither of them seemed to notice Emily leaning in her doorway, her arms folded across her chest as she watched the duo.

Her thoughts seemed to flow through her head in a way she never seemed to notice before.

She was responsible for Roxie's death. No one seems to know that, not even Eduardo. For all he knows, it was just a coincidence. Of course, that's for the best, and that's part of why she allowed a teen with such a small brain to join her.

With Roxie dead, hopefully that will shift the attention from people such as Jace, and instead put Mickey in the spotlight.

They don't seem to understand that Mickey is the same age as them, and still acts like a child. So why are they protecting him? Now, even with Roxie gone, why is Erica protecting him?

Maybe part of that note she forged actually did speak some truth.

'God! Even if what I did was wrong, why does it feel so damn GOOD!' Emily thought, her euphoria catching up with her. Although Roxie wasn't killed by her hand, it still felt amazing that she was the cause of what happened!

"What're you looking at, señorita?" She heard Eduardo speak from behind her, tearing her away from her thoughts, and allowing her to spin around, and stare Eduardo in the eye, in which, if she choose so, could either be menacing, or not, depending on her mood.

"Thinking, ever heard of it?" Emily lied smoothly in return, tapping her fingers along her arm.

Eduardo found himself flashing a grin he thought was seductive. Of course, he couldn't be any more wrong. "So what is it that you used Roxie's pages for?"

"I was looking for blackmail." She answered, once again lying much more suavely then the first time. "Obviously we don't need it anymore." She scowled, reaching into her pocket, her hand curling around the page she tore out.

Taking a quick last glance at it, she shoved it into Eduardo's chest, and let her arm fall back to her side. "Get rid of that for me."

"Why?" The wannabe charmer asked, his smile completely fading away.

"Because I found it. I believe it's only fair that you get rid of it."

"And how do you reckon I do that?"

"You're a smart guy. Figure it out." Once again, she lied. Turning away, she began down the hall and crossed her arms in front of her chest, leaving her 'partner' staring in disbelief, holding a crumpled up piece of paper in his hand.

* * *

"Humans. So fragile." A demon spoke as he woke up in the body of his female counterpart.

Nebiros took a long breath, running his hand through their hair. Despite being whatever he was, he still wasn't used to the human body. Especially its nature.

Sleep. Lust. Hunger. Whatever are other human needs he has yet to discover in this...form.

Standing to his feet, Nebiros reached into Irina's wardrobe, and dressed himself in the outfit he only saw fit.

Tossing away the clothes Irina always wore, he managed to fit himself into a black tuxedo, expertly tying a red crimson bowtie at his front, and black tuxedo pants. Placing a black top hat on his head, he ran his fingers over the brim, and staring at the mirror.

He didn't enjoy the body he was forced to be trapped in, but what did it matter? His job was simple, escape the island alive, and cause as much chaos as he pleases.

Simple. Simple, and yet so perfect.

The door to Irina's room opened, and it was the demon that stepped out, a different smirk on his face rather then the usual look Irina seemed to have.

"What's up with you?" A male voice came from behind him. What was his name again?

"Hello, Chase." Irina spun around, staring almost blankly into the eyes of her teammate.

"It's Jace," said teen corrected, "and again, what're you wearing?"

"Actually you didn't say that." Irina retorted. "But to answer your question, I did like how this looked."

Jace raised an eyebrow. Irina seemed...different then normal, why is that?

"Anywho, shall we get our game faces on for our next challenge, Chase?"

"It's Jace." The teen corrected her again, ignoring her own question.

Even if he had given her an answer to her question, it would've left unheeded as she was already walking down the hallway, leaving a type of sway in her arms that Jace didn't notice.

Everything about Irina was so much more different than anyone would begin to think.

* * *

Hunter sat on his bed, holding the same CZ-USA 85 Combat in his palms, tracing each line and indent the pistol had with his thumb.

Every day of every minute, he could feel himself falling further and further away from humanity. Soon, he would just be the shell he would used to be, taking Clifford's orders whenever that godforsaken song was playing.

He still couldn't believe that he killed Kevin. He could remember it, but he hadn't had a single control in his body. Whatever Clifford and St. Clarence had been creating, it was so much stronger then he ever was and ever will be.

Isn't the mind meant to be the strongest part of the human anatomy? Why doesn't it seem that way!?

No, wait a minute. He has been having full control, even when he killed Kevin. That song that was playing has been the trigger for every dark thought, and inch of hatred in his body, and brought it to light.

He has had full control of his body.

All this was was denial. Almost like a relationship. He was in denial that anything like this could ever happen to someone, including himself.

Hunter closed his eyes, and placed the pistol back on his bed, leaning backwards as he took a breath of everything he was doing and thinking.

And quickly, he moved the pistol under his pillow, hiding it from anyone who would come in. It should remain under there until his own execution, where he'll shoot Clifford, and take him down with him.

If he couldn't survive, that's the least he could do. Especially now.

* * *

Stepping out of his room, Timothy watched as the rest of his competitors walked past him, some of them annoyed with his stupid grin he always had, and others glad that they had one light bulb in this dark shadow.

Starting to walk along the carpet, he felt two small hands grip his shoulders and force themselves off the floor for a few seconds.

The person let go, and dropped down next to him, with her smile of her own.

As for what Timothy saw, Chloe looked so much more beautiful then she did yesterday. Not to say he didn't find her attractive.

She had let her hair down, and seemed to reveal that it wasn't as long as people thought it was, only reaching just above her shoulders.

Chloe's smile only grew wider at seeing Timothy's expression, and she pushed her purple highlight away from her eye, begging herself to not blush.

"You look beautiful."

'Don't blush! Don't do it, Chloe! Don't blush!'

The thoughts in her head went unheard as Chloe's cheeks burned up, not from embarrassment, oh no. But from an emotion she never felt before until she met Timothy.

"Thank you." She smiled wide, taking Timothy's hand in her own. Maybe this was the best time to tell him how she truly felt?

"Timothy, can I be honest with you?"

The optimist's smile faltered, yet only slightly. It was back before she knew.

"Of course you can." He murmured, holding the girl's hand tight, but she didn't seem to object. Wasn't that a good sign?

Chloe didn't seem to know how to start. Her smile never faded, however, and Timothy believed that was a good thing. Of course it was! She finally looked happy.

"I-I wanna live the rest of my life with you, Timothy." She admitted, failing to look him in the eye, and instead found herself looking at the floor. "Whether I die today or tomorrow, or I want you to know that being with you has made me the happiest I have ever been."

"That's so cheesy." The optimist joked, which Chloe could only shrug in response.

"Well, I think it's the best way to tell you everything I know how to say."

She seized his hand it placed it on her hip, making sure Timothy kept it there.

Her smile disappeared for a moment, and her eyes flickered to Timothy's, and then back to the floor. "You know only one of us can get out of here…" She trailed off. There was no way she was going to finish that thought aloud.

"We'll find a way. I won't let you die." Timothy brushed his thumb through Chloe's hair.

The short girl pulled herself away from him, scratching her neck slightly. She hated this. Hated this game. Hated the possibility of what could happen to them.

Maybe things could be different now. Maybe her and Timothy were always meant to be together. Maybe they will survive Clifford's sick game.

The only thing they could do is cling to hope. But that's all they could do. Nothing more, nothing less.

* * *

Each and every morning, the sadistic terrorist known as Clifford Lane always seemed to find it amusing as every one of his possible victims slowly walked down the stairs, and into the kitchen.

As per usual, Land stood between the two tables and in front of the board, keeping his umbrella's edge pressed against the wooden board in the floor, twisting it left and right, as though it were a pendulum clock.

Every contestant filed in one by one, all of them sitting down at their appropriate table. It wasn't like they had much a choice. Who knows what Clifford would do if you were to break any rule of his game.

And as they all sat down, Clifford brought his hand from behind his back, looking at a new photo with a small piece of tape to it.

He brought the new photo to the board, next to its rightful place next to Marisa's suffocated mess. This one was an image of Roxie, holes and blood emerging from all over her body, ranging from her throat, her chest, her cheeks, and one of her eyes.

If one were to look closely, they'd be able to see as if her eye had been popped, with its insides sliding down the side of her face.

"You're sick." Lizzy grimaced. Much to her chagrin, Lane simply shrugged, neither confirming nor denying her.

Some of them could hardly look at these disgusting images, especially this early in the morning, and usually, minutes from breakfast.

The only one who was looking was Irina, wonders seeming to explore her head. Would each person she kill be pictured and put on this board?

"Would any of you like to get to the next challenge?" Clifford asked, turning away from the board. He didn't expect anyone to answer, and he was glad no one did.

The front door opened, and Brendan entered, wheeling in a cart with a plastic crates, almost filled to the brim with handcuffs.

To the left of the crate was a hat, its opening facing up towards the ceiling. Unbeknownst to the cast, several names had been cut and placed inside. Thing is, all of those names belong to someone on the Vipers.

"Today's challenge will be different. But before we get to it, I think we should even the teams out before we begin." Clifford calmly stated, walking in between the two tables, his hand once again neatly folded behind his back.

What was this about? Was Clifford going to kill another one of them just to even out the teams? Considering who this man was, anything truly was possible.

He spun around, facing the teams once again, and his back to the crate. Brendan circled around the cart, his hand gripping the brim of the hat, holding it at Clifford's side.

"Vipers, you have one too many players. So, I'm afraid we're going to have to reduce you by one."

What?

A new kind of fear began to implement itself into the Vipers' mind, as they watched Clifford's hand dip into the hat, and circle around until it grabbed onto a piece of paper.

A paper with a name on it.

But even as this happened, Emily seemed to be the only person to see Lane's umbrella hand slip into his pocket. His Ruger SR1911.

After what felt like a solid minute of waiting, Clifford's hand finally seemed to grab onto a paper, and he pulled back, reading the name before he smirked devilishly.

"And, I have tabulated the results, and the next person gone, is…" Lane trailed off, retracting his hand from his coat pocket, and showing that Emily was indeed right. It was his Ruger.

"Emily."

And then without anyone completely registering it, a single shot rang out.

But no impact with flesh was made.

Emily had closed her eyes, expecting a bullet to hit her as soon as her name was said. But if that was the case, why was she still alive? Why wasn't there any sudden pain? No blood?

"I'm kidding!" Came Clifford's voice once again, and when Emily opened her eyes, she saw that Clifford had his pistol pointed at the ceiling, and a wicked smile going from ear to ear.

"Killing one of you before the execution is against the rules. You can only die during a challenge because of your own stupidity, or by your heartless teammates voting for you." The sadist had made clear. He didn't want to repeat this, and this fake out seemed the best way to do it.

"What's wrong with you!?" Daisy yelled, showing a slight concern for Emily, who still seemed to be slightly shaken.

"We all have our faults." Came the smug response as he dropped his Ruger back in his coat pocket, and placing his hand back on the handle of his umbrella.

"Now, your true challenge is simple. The rest of you will be handcuffed to a person of the opposite team. Anyone can drop out at any time, however, the team with the most drop outs faces execution."

"Sounds simple enough." Eduardo winked at Erica from his table, who didn't seem to notice.

"Of course it does. At first, that is. Each pair is allowed to do anything to their opponent to make them quit the challenge. Of course, you can't be too extreme. Killing you guys is my jobs." A demented smirk emerged on his lips, though his stature never changed.

"So, do we just choose who to partner up with?" Alexei asked, his eyes wandering over the team across from him.

"I was getting to that." Lane looked to the hat, and then back to his victims. "Just like with Emily, I will be drawing some names. When your name is selected with another name, from the opposing team, then you will be handcuffed to each other."

"And when someone drops out? Where do we go?" Someone asked. Clifford didn't seem to care who it was because the question they asked was much more important to him.

"Find Mister Gardener." He jabbed his thumb at Brendan, who gave a slight nod in return.

As Clifford spoke, the contestants had to notice Brendan reach into his pocket and pluck out six pieces of paper, all of them cut evenly as they were placed down on the cart. The introvert pushed each sliver of paper to make them appear the same distance from each other.

The sadist's eyes glanced down at the top name, his hand reaching back into the hat. "Mickey, your partner shall be…" He allowed himself to trail off as his hand circled around the hat. All that mattered was when he was going to stop, and grab that piece of paper.

While none of them were voting someone off, Clifford certainly made it feel that way.

Finally, his hand had stopped and he brought the paper to his eyes, and read the name aloud. "Eduardo."

The two teens locked eyes with each other, and both of them knew who it was they were going to have to deal with for this challenge.

Despite being on opposite sides of the room, they both stood up and approached each other, meeting at the crate where Brendan held Eduardo's hand up, and snapped the handcuffs around his wrist, before he did the same to Mickey.

"Next on the list," Clifford started, seeing as how no words had been exchanged between both Mickey and Eduardo, "Jade."

Again, they could only watch as his hand dropped into the hat. But, one would have to admit, it felt so much faster than how it was last time.

"Chloe." He read, placing the paper down next to Jade's name. There was some hesitation between the two of them, as if they should even stand at all. While they didn't have a history with each other, their relationship could most definitely take a hostile turn. Not from Chloe, however, but from Jade. It was her mood.

Emotions are so complex, aren't they? You could be the happiest person alive, and then in just mere moments, the angriest person. But, that is just how human nature is.

Just like how it is in human nature to survive. People do the most irrational things when it comes to their survival.

However, that always does change depending in the situation. It's just how people are, and no one will ever be able to change that.

The conspiracy theorist and the savant both exchanged glances as Brendan snapped the handcuffs on, and in doing so, Clifford immediately went to the next person on the 'list'.

"Irina, and Alexei." There was no break this time. The sadist seemed to have become bored by the way this was going, and only wanted to end this part of today's activity as fast as he could.

"Looks like it's me and you, Hike!" Irina exclaimed in a uncharacteristically way once the duo had been handcuffed to each other.

"Hike?" Alexei asked. His question became shunned by the demon, already messing slightly with the handcuffs as they were pushed out of the way of the cart.

"Hunter and Lizzy!"

An interesting pair. How long would they last in this challenge?

Not long, probably. No one seems to trust Hunter at all after the incident he was responsible for just a few days ago.

Of course, no one would ever really know the cause behind what he did.

Why he did it was only because of that song. In a way, he's become a sleeper agent working alongside Clifford, against his will, may you keep in mind.

"Erica and Timothy!"

Ah, one of the pairs that would probably get along better than most. As far as anyone knows, Erica doesn't have any enemies.

Of course, that could change at any point in time. There was one person she didn't like, but was she framed for that note?

Poor Roxie.

If she was framed, she would have to find out the person responsible. There was only so many people, however. The most likely candidate would be Jace, but even he doesn't seem as cold hearted as to get someone executed.

Then again, he and Jack were close in the time the polymath was alive. So really, who can you trust in this place?

Mickey. She could trust Mickey. Poor guy, he seemed so close to Roxie, it only makes it fair for her to be the one to look after him now.

If anyone deserves to escape this place, it is him. It was her morals over her own survival, if she could help anyone survive, she would be happy. Even if that meant she would end up dead.

"And finally, Daisy and Jace! Have fun you two!"

"Shit." Jace found himself curse under his breath, his eyes wandering to where Daisy was sitting. She, too, looked unhappy with this outcome.

Of course, it wouldn't really affect her as much as it would Jace. Whatever he had as an idea to torture her, she would be too strong for it. She knew that.

Question is, how much does Jace know?

"So, does Emily not do anything this challenge?" Lizzy asked, glaring at the loner as she remained sitting, smug with her result for the day.

"That would be correct." Clifford smirked, resting his hand hard on his umbrella. "Now, go do whatever it is you want, because your challenge has just begun once more."

* * *

Breakfast came and went for them. Although it was definitely difficult to eat with your non-dominant hand, considering they were stuck, handcuffed to each other.

Not only were their hands shaking from the cuffs, but also with fear. A factor most people seem to forget.

Still, however, it was something that was probably the most important piece of a puzzle, and especially for Jade as she and Chloe sat on the steps of the cabin.

Still, the savant was furious with what Erica said earlier that morning, but what good was it to take that anger out on someone she hardly knew?

Chloe flipped through the pictures she has taken since her time on the island, scrolling through each and every small detail that she believed was big.

She had to notice, though. Recently, during specific challenges, Clifford never seemed to watch them, almost as if he disappeared off the island entirely.

But where was he?

His headquarters! Her memory of that dark room was still vivid, and she still doesn't remember where it was but what would Clifford be doing there?

"Why don't you believe the government?"

Jade was...asking her? That was the first. No one ever asked her questions about what she thought. They always thought she was just another person, crazy, and deluded.

But if someone was willing to ask, it did feel like someone does want to talk. Someone that wasn't Timothy. Not that she had any complaints. Talking with him, no, everything about him is wonderful.

It's amazing he wasn't taken already.

Inwardly, Chloe sighed dreamily. Oh, Timothy, you truly were the best thing to happen to her. But there was something that they hadn't thought about facing before.

What would happen to the other if they were executed. No, not 'if', when they are executed.

"I don't know." The theorist finally spoke. She was genuine, considering who this girl was, the look on her face almost certainly gave that away.

"You don't know?" Jade repeated, as if she were a computer being given an answer that couldn't compute.

Chloe nodded, looking down at her feet. "I guess it was the environment I grew up in. Or maybe it was my parents?"

Understandable.

It's almost like a religion. If you go to church, chances are that you believe what they say because it is what your parents believe. What your parents want you to believe.

A type of butterfly effect, if you will. Fascinating, isn't it? One small event in someone's life can change them to what they can become when they become an adult.

But it is always so much more than that. Just a mere sequence of words can have dire consequences. What if a man jokingly said 'I love you' to a woman walking past him on the street. Something...small, isn't it? But later that night, her boyfriend sneaks into your house and shoots you dead. The butterfly effect.

Of course, it has so many different meanings, but when it comes to the life of someone, why does it seem that much more interesting?

"I think it started when I was ten," Chloe spoke, earning Jade's attention. The savant looked at the girl as she began her story. "I noticed on some news articles in the paper that...well, the details were wrong or different depending on the person or publishers who wrote it.

"I don't think I cared about it at first, but the more I watched the news, read it, the more I saw that the details were wrong, or out of place.

"So, I researched conspiracy theories, like the 9/11 attacks, the John F. Kennedy assassination, and Area 51. But, I guess the ones that really seemed interesting to me was the extraterrestrial sightings."

Jade looked baffled. Why was this girl opening up to her this much? This should be something one should keep to themselves.

Because if she wanted to get out if here, Chloe would have to die. It isn't what she wanted, but to get out, what could she really do?

"Why did you audition for this show?" Chloe found herself asking. Maybe that should've been a question kept to himself. Too late now, though.

"I don't know." The savant admitted. "To get away from everything, maybe. Or, maybe to prove those people at my school that I could win."

And then there was silence. No one was any more willing to say a word. Didn't they already say enough about themselves?

Not that it really matters. For all they know, Clifford will release everything about them as soon as this show ends, their parents, brothers, sisters, all the rest of it. But, what could they do?

Lane considers himself to be ahead of the game, but what was he really? Just another serial killer. There isn't any difference, as soon as he does end up behind bars, whenever that is, two more roots will grow up in his place. It's a cycle that will never end.

It's just how humanity is. You can't change that. Nobody can.

* * *

Well this felt...different.

Alexei and Irina had been walking along the forest path for a good ten minutes now, far away from anyone at the so-called 'camp' that they had been forced into.

Irina and him and never met, was she always so kind like this, or was it supposed to be her way of coping? After all, that would be understandable.

"Come on, Hike, I thought you enjoyed navigating through the forest!" Irina had exclaimed, all but pulling Alexei along as they walked.

'Wait, what?'

"How did you know that? I never mentioned that." The hiker recalled, and indeed, he never did mention that he did enjoy that 'sport'.

"Well, you certainly look the part!" She spun around, looking Alexei in the eyes, and it was the first time he noticed her eye color had faded from its feline orange, and to a pearl white.

"Are you wearing contacts?" He asked, flicking his sight from eye to eye.

Maybe it was better for Nebiros to ignore him? Yes, it would be, wouldn't it?

She tugged their arms further down the path. "Let's continue on." She decided, pulling Alexei with her, failing to notice the look of what seemed to be a mixture of nervousness and fear as they walked.

* * *

Emily had watched as her teammates and enemies dispersed through the campground. Although, she couldn't help but notice one group fail to leave. Lizzy and Hunter.

Strange. Or maybe it was simply because they'd prefer not to be in the pouring rain.

It doesn't matter, though. With Roxie dead, should she find a new target, or had she already found one?

Erica.

That wouldn't work. According that note, Erica would've been Roxie's target. It would seem...obvious if she did something that way to Erica so soon, she would have to wait.

But that doesn't mean that she can't look towards those in that alliance. Who was it again? Dylan, Jade, Daisy, Hunter, and Erica. How convenient.

Perhaps she was looking at this wrong. Perhaps Erica had a nice blackmail opportunity waiting for her. Wasn't it obvious?

Discreetly, Emily picked the lock to Erica's door, a skill she learned from Eduardo. He may have been completely brain dead, but he does have a few useful qualities.

Softly, Emily opened the door, making sure she didn't make a single sound. She didn't want to alert either Hunter or Lizzy.

What she found inside was exactly what she thought she would find. A neat and tidy room, with trophies from Erica winning marathons at the top of a bookshelf.

She could feel the carpet seem to slip from beneath her feet, allowing her room as she stood, examining the room, unaware where she should even start.

Within seconds, the loner was searching through the drawers, quietly removing anything that would help her determine a blackmail opportunity. Something she would be able to exploit to its full potential.

And there it was, what felt like a gold mine, all on her hand. But why did it feel so weak? So boring? Perhaps it was only because it felt so childish behind it all, little love notes being passed to each other.

Of course, it was only one. But it was one that made every piece fall into place. A signal that there was someone on this island who didn't exactly look like what he seemed.

Dylan Forrest and Erica Hayes were much more than friends.

How cartoonish was that?

* * *

Detective John Corrow popped a cough drop in his mouth, staring at the front gate of one of the single most expensive houses in L.A.

He had rolled up to the house, and pressed the button on the speaker, before his hand had found its way up to his mustache.

There was a very long pause of silence. One that Corrow felt went on much too long, but his worry was put to side when he heard a voice on the other side of the speaker.

"Yes?" It was a male voice. Of course he was, he hoped he was, otherwise this would've been the wrong person to visit.

But was only because he was his one and only lead. He lead that he had to call after forcing himself to watch another episode of Clifford Lane's show.

While he was right to live in a secure house, would it really help him? Help him survive Lane's threshold on his family?

"Detective John Corrow, I'm here to see Jason Forrest." The detective spoke, intentionally leaving out the portion of his statement of being a cop where his jurisdiction was on the other side of the country.

He hear a faint 'Christ' come from the other side of the speaker, before the man brought his lips back to the microphone. "May I see your badge?"

The detective complied, almost as though be expected as much of this to happen. Reaching into his pocket, he produced his police badge and showed it to the camera, keeping it just far enough away so he wouldn't be able to tell it wasn't a Los Angeles emblem.

There was another pause. This one lasted much longer than the last, as if the person from within the house was contemplating on even letting the detective in.

Ultimately, he decided to do so, pressing a button, and allowing his gates to open.

It only took him only a minute for him to pull into the driveway, and parking his rental 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee.

He seemed to contemplate what he should say. He sighed. This was so much a bigger case than he could ever imagine, and with Forrest as his only lead, he could not screw this up.

He opened the door, and stepped out, reaching his arms around his coat, and pulled it further onto his back, smoothing out its creases.

The front door opened, though there was no person to touch it. Creaking open slowly, there was indeed no person behind it.

* * *

"I'm sorry for your loss." The detective grievously apologized to the millionaire. He could only imagine how hard it is for someone to lose the person they love. His son was dead. He died on international television.

"You people keep saying that, but do you really mean it?" Forrest bitterly countered, his remorse only lucid in his voice.

He was right. His son was dead, the last thing he would want to hear was something to remind him of his loss.

"I know the last thing you want to hear is about your son, and I am sorry, but I need to ask you some questions regarding that show."

"Hah! Show!" Forrest scoffed. "If you could even call it that."

Corrow glanced downwards, folding his arms in his lap and uncomfortably shifted in his seat.

He decided to cut straight to the point, there was no point in drawing this out much longer than he needed to.

"I'm here because I believe I need to use your supercomputer."

Forrest raised an eyebrow. "You people are really getting that much desperate? You need to borrow my computer?"

It was Corrow's turn to shrug. "It's the best I can do to further this investigation."

Forrest scowled. "And why did you come to me? To rub it in my face that my son is dead? Is that it, detective?"

The detective placed his elbow on his armrest, and his fist on his jaw.

"I guess you could say that." He decided to take the cynical approach, leaning further back in his chair.

Forrest gaped for a long instant before his lips grew into a slight smile, curling his fingers into pistols and pointed them at Corrow.

"I like you." He conceded. "Allow me to take you to the mainframe."

Standing up, Forrest was already walking out the door, as if it was a signal for Corrow to hurry. Trailing behind him quickly, he followed Forrest through the next door.

This whole thing is insane. None of this should be happening. What Lane has been doing is extremely illegal, it is unbelievable.

And yet he managed to let it go off without a hitch.

Only someone insane should be able to mastermind this kind of plot. Who Clifford Lane before any of this? What kind of man was he before he killed Chris McLean? Before he entered the life of Damien Deveraux?

Was Lane always this evil person that we always see on television? Was he once good? Or is he the textbook example of the saying 'born bad'?

He wiped these thoughts out of his mind as he sat down in a swivel chair, facing a giant computer screen, implanted into the wall.

"I need to look into someone." Corrow told him, almost unaware that he was talking to a civilian about his job, but it doesn't matter. He has been stuck on square one long enough. "But, I don't have access to his file."

Forrest was only looking at his nails as he said this. "What's his name?"

"Jerome St. Clarence." He said it without any hesitation. Something that Forrest seemed to acknowledge, but decided to excuse it. After all, what is it that he could do on his own, anyway?

Turning his head to the ceiling, Forrest spoke, not to Corrow, but to his A.I. system. "Max, find Jerome St. Clarence in police files, please. Go around the roadblocks." He seemed to be half-joking on that last part, Corrow had to notice.

"Yes, sir." Was the response, and the computer flicked through what seemed to be hundreds of web pages in an instant, and ending on the police file Corrow so desperately needed to see.

'St. Clarence, Jerome, Elroy. Born July 17, 1991.'

"Jerome Elroy St. Clarence," Corrow found himself reading aloud, and mostly skimming over the document.

At the bottom of the page, he saw something that caught his eye so much more than anything else. He had met Chris McLean before.

He was the youngest judge in a figure skating show alongside Chris and two other judges. Of course, McLean quit soon after and joined the Total Drama Island project.

And now, only a few years later, it was that same show that had him killed, and his co-worker aboard this new show as well, and helping Lane kill these minors off, all one by one.

"You done yet?" An impatient Forrest asked with an irritated glare. "How is this guy supposed to help you find wherever that sadistic host is?"

Corrow didn't answer him, leaning back in the swivel chair and staring up at the screen. How long he remained silent he wasn't sure, as he slowly turned himself around. "I don't know."

"Wow, some help." Forrest claimed in a sardonic way, stepping away from Corrow, almost as if he wanted to get out of the room.

"Can I look at your son's audition tape?"

It was a question that neither of them had expected. Forrest seemed to freeze in place, and it was only understandable why he would.

"How would that help you, detective?" It was the same tone he used when he let him in the house. A tone that meant he wasn't welcomed, nor did it mean that he was wanted.

"If you want me to find Lane, then I think you should do what I ask of you."

The man contemplated. On one hand, there was so much more than a lethal injection he wished Lane would receive. A firing squad even. Something this asshole deserved. But on the other, what would this help for anyone?

Dylan was dead, and there is no way to change that?

Sure, Forrest could be quite the cold-hearted son of a bitch sometimes, but Lane took his boy from him. The most of anything he could ever ask is to see him burn in Hell for everything he did. Not just for him, but for everyone and anyone.

"Fine. But then you get the hell outta my house." The millionaire looked away from the screen, as though it was something he couldn't bare to watch. "Max, play the audition tape."

"Yes, sir."

And then, just like that, Dylan seemed that much more alive again. Like he never left. Like this whole situation never actually happened.

None of these kids deserved this, what made Clifford chose them? Only a complete psychopath could do this, kill these minors on television and broadcast it to the world for everyone to see, as if he wanted the parents to feel guilty that their kids were no longer apart of this world.

And it was all because of Clifford fucking Lane.

"Hello, producers." The architect had started, placing his hands on his desk and running the tips of his fingers over his blueprints.

"I believe that you should choose me among your next batch of contestants. Because when was the last time your show ever had a genius that wasn't a psycho, or a doll?

"Believe me, I know exactly how these people can function, and if I have to, I will exploit their weaknesses to cause a distraction if I have to. So please, consider me as your next pick."

With that, the camera shut off.

Oh, that poor boy. He had no idea what auditioning for this show was going to do. If only he did know. If only all of them knew.

"Alright, you saw it. Now get the fuck outta here."

* * *

The challenge would be ending soon. He knew it. He had to be quick, who knows when Clifford would come back.

He's been here only a few times. It was a large shack, and yet seemed to be able to fall apart at any moment. Even its doors were almost completely off the hinges.

Why it was like this doesn't matter, although he did have a few thoughts flow through his mind. Was it this continuing raging storm? Or was it just built this way?

Harvey stepped to the door quietly. If there was anyone inside, he would have to avoid them at all costs.

He cracked the door open just inches from its closed appearance. Nothing, no sound at all. No one was here.

Harvey exhaled in pure relief as he pushed himself into the hut, and discreetly shut the door behind him.

Quickly, he double-checked his surroundings, making sure there was no one inside this shack, Harvey snuck his hand into his pocket, producing a stethoscope, he walked closer to a safe.

He pondered for a moment. Why does this seem so easy?

No, he decided he didn't care and placed the stethoscope on the dial of the safe, and placing the other pieces in his ears, allowing him to slowly flip through this safe, and get that damn phone.

* * *

Two groups had been left. Daisy and Jace, and Alexei and Irina. Strange, isn't it? That they were the last groups? One has to think, what has been taking them this long to throw their partner off of them?

"You and Jade looked like you got along well." Timothy smiled.

Both he and his girlfriend were in his room. There wasn't anywhere they could go without being questioned by the others. Or, that was what their thoughts told them.

"Yeah." Was all Chloe had to say. She didn't know what to say. Her conversation with Jade brought her past to light, a past that she honestly wished she had forgotten.

Unfortunately for her, Timothy seemed to pick up on this, tilting his head in a concerning manner.

"What's wrong, Chloe?"

She seemed to hesitate, placing her hands in her lap as she twiddled her thumbs.

"Just...telling Jade all those things about me made me think of some not-so-great memories." She confessed. See, Chloe wasn't one to vent in front of others. She preferred to keep it to herself. Wasn't that what you were supposed to do?

She wasn't used to any of this. Chloe never had any friends back then, nor a real boyfriend. It was all new to her. Of course, she wasn't homeschooled, Chloe was very intelligent, but some people don't seem to realize that. Not even herself.

"Oh...I'm sorry." It was all he could say. He couldn't pressure her. That just isn't right.

"It isn't your fault. It's mine. I just made some decisions I wish I could go back on."

An idea seemed to strike Timothy. But what if she thought he was selfish? Should he keep it to himself?

Not if it helps her.

"Maybe talking about it will help?"

Chloe giggled, turning her head up at Timothy with a small grin. "What are you, a therapist?"

Timothy shrugged, though his smile didn't fade at all. It almost seemed like it grew even further.

"Well, being open with everything I thought, that's I wish I could change. Every time I did I just drove everyone around me away." She felt butterflies in her chest. "Except you."

Bittersweet.

"Is that a good thing?" He found himself asking, suddenly becoming unsure about himself.

"Of course it's a good thing!" She exclaimed. She was tempted to stand up and tackle him down in a hug. But, then again…

What's stopping her?

* * *

It was almost ironic.

Erica was back in the same place she was that morning, and not only in the same place, but the same position.

Lying on her back, and staring at the ceiling. Did she fuck it all up with Jade? Christ…

Hey, look at that. Dylan seems to be rubbing off on her.

A faint knock came at her door. It was almost a complete mimic of this morning. Including what she said next.

"Come in." She said in that same tone. It was almost like she and Jade would be doing this whole conversation all over again.

That was, if the person was Jade.

Emily shut the door behind her. If she hadn't been in here before, she would actually take to acknowledge the trophies on the shelf.

No, not this time.

This time, she has one goal alone.

But how would they start off this conversation?

"How did you get Timothy off of you?" She asked, crossing her arms and leaning against the bookshelf.

"I didn't." She answered, cocking her head to stare at the girl. For a moment, Emily looked shocked that Timothy managed Erica off the cuffs. That was, until Erica finished. "He pulled himself off."

"He quit?" Emily raised an eyebrow, although, no one would be able to see it.

Erica hummed in response, turning her head back up to the ceiling.

"So, why are you here?" She asked, there almost effort in her at not looking at her.

Emily produced the note she found, holding it close to her chest. "I know something was between you and Dylan."

"What?"

She seemed to have struck a chord. Erica turned her head to face Emily, only to see her holding a certain note close to her chest.

Pieces of a puzzle seemed to align in her brain as she swung her legs over the side of the bed, her eyes drifting between both Emily's face and the note.

Internally, her heart was pounding, but she wouldn't let it get the best of her. Poker face. She had to keep it, otherwise Emily wouldn't get anything she wanted.

"It was you," Erica started, staring at Emily, and yet making no move to attack her. "It was you who killed Roxie."

Emily closed her eyes, rocking her head back, remembering how she did it. How easy it all was.

"Yes. I did." She answered her question, trying to stop herself from smiling.

"You evil bastard."

"I'm just doing what I have to do if I wanna survive." She shrugged slightly. "And enjoy myself doing it."

"Why're you here?" Her poker face fell completely, something Emily almost reveled in.

"Because if you don't do what I want, I will have to show this note to everyone left. And I know you don't want to leave poor Mickey all alone."

Erica found herself in worry, an emotion she hadn't usually found recently. At least, one she hadn't shown physically.

"And what's stopping me from ripping that note from your hand?" Erica asked, her eyes drifting once again from Emily's face, and to her hand.

"Because seeing that I have a black eye wouldn't look too good on you."

Erica found herself in utter disbelief. How could this have happened? What steps were taken for any of them to get to this moment in time.

She almost stumbled on the words she next spoke.

"Okay, I'll help you." She said it only with regret. But this wasn't something she had any power over.

"All contestants, please meet outside, all contestants." The loudspeakers voiced themselves. What did Clifford want?

* * *

"Well, this had to be the single most boring challenge ever." Clifford found himself frowning, looking between the two teams, both of them lined up in front of him.

"But, I'll have to congratulate the Vipers!"

There was silence. No cheering. But there was smiles, and none of them came from the Phoenixes.

"For losing!"

It was almost gut-wrenching. The hope he gave them, and then yanked it all back. Insulting, almost.

"We lost?" Eduardo asked, as though he couldn't believe it.

"Yes, Eduardo. You lost. So, you should probably settle on someone to vote for tonight." He smirked that same devilish smirk. His hand twisted on his umbrella handle, holding it as if it were a cane.

The rain had cleared only a little since the start of the challenge, the gray clouds beginning to dissipate.

"No, they won't." It was a voice no one had really recognized before. Not even Brendan. The only person who did was Clifford, and as he stood, he could only feel the cold metal of a gun barrel pointed at the back of his head.

"Harvey." Clifford smirked, holding up his free hand, signalling to his cameramen to lower their own guns. Seeing as how they followed their orders, Clifford turned around to face the Interpol agent, although his smirk never did fade.

"I was wondering when you would make your move." He almost laughed, remembering faintly to when he shot Dandy in the head.

"Where is Dandy?" It was Harvey's next question, almost mirroring Clifford's own thoughts.

"I shot him."

As all of this had been going on, the contestants all watched with hope as Harvey made his stand to the sadistic 'host'.

"You're lying!"

"Afraid I'm not."

Before anyone could further this conversation, Clifford's walkie-talkie buzzed to life with what sounded like St. Clarence's voice. A voice that almost made Hunter go insane just by hearing it.

Clifford shot Harvey a look that almost seemed as if he were asking to pick it up. His permission was granted.

"What's going on?" Alexei quietly asked Lizzy, who too wasn't sure what was going on.

"I don't know." She admitted, attempting to get a better view on what was being exchanged between the two.

Holding the walkie-talkie to his mouth, Clifford went on as if nothing was happening to him.

"Yes, sir?" He joked, removing his finger from the button.

"A call just came through."

"Is it important?"

"Yes. It is."

"Then what is it?"

"They're releasing Damien."

It was silent. Had the government finally given in to what he wanted? Finally!

"Repeat that?" Clifford asked, as if he was clarifying what he just told him.

"They're releasing Damien." St. Clarence repeated, much more slowly then the last time.

Lane dropped the walkie-talkie to his side, his evil smirk growing wider. He spun on his foot to face the remaining contestants, all of which seemed confused with what had just occurred.

"Good news!"

* * *

The Boeing CH-47 Chinook seemed to start to life, all of the remaining thirteen contestants slowly filing into the helicopter.

"We're free!" Chloe exclaimed to Timothy. They were so tempted to kiss again right then.

Brendan walked to Clifford's side as the teens slowly fit inside, and the door was shut. "Why don't we keep them?" Brendan asked, turning his head to Clifford as Harvey started the helicopter, the blades beginning to turn.

"I'm a man of my word." Lane replied. He wished he could see the faces of these guys when they figured out they were in the same chopper as ten dead bodies.

Little did they know, in Colorado, Damien Deveraux smirked as he straightened out his tie, beginning to walk from ADX Florence, to it's exit.

He was a free man once again.

He could tell that the guards weren't exactly pleased by this turn of events, but it wasn't exactly like they had any control over this..

Clifford did good. He got him free.

As Deveraux thought about what he could do in the future, it was to his horror that the sirens went off, and the front gates beginning to close.

"Prisoner escaping!" The intercom yelled, and the guards trained their rifles on Deveraux, threatening him to move.

Of course, he did move. And not in the direction they wanted.

He launched himself forward into a full blown sprint, throwing off his new suit jacket as it slowed him down.

His dreams of freedom were never met, however, as the guards began firing, their bullets slamming into Deveraux's back. Within moments, the arms dealer fell to the ground, his blood leaking from his wounds as his face paled.

Damien Deveraux was dead.

Clifford's bargaining chip...was gone.

* * *

The helicopter began to lift itself off the ground, its blades created a deafening roar. A roar so loud that it almost caused Clifford to fail to hear his walkie-talkie.

Almost.

The chopper hadn't gained enough air yet, and nor was it ever going to.

Clifford Lane opened fire on the chopper with a hatred, and Brendan followed suit.

Harvey attempted to steer them away from the incoming bullets, but it was too late. One of the stray bullets slammed into his chest, and another one lodging itself into his head.

But even with that, it didn't stop them from shooting it down. They only stopped was when they saw it start spinning out of control, the faint yells and screams from the thirteen alive contestants from inside could only just be heard.

"Stop firing!" Lane shouted. "We need the teens alive!"

Without much of a warning, the helicopter slammed into the dirt, skidding along the mud until it finally came to a stop, its front crashing into a tree, almost completely toppling it over.

Gasoline poured from the chopper's fuel tank into the grass as the rotor blades caught fire.

The metal cargo door only opened from the combined strength of Erica and Daisy, slipping into the fresh air, and making a mad dash from the helicopter.

Although Clifford couldn't see it, he could almost hear the contestants pushing past each other in the hopes of escaping the burning helicopter, and some of them climbing into the cockpit, punching out the windows, and crawling out.

The fire only seemed to get that much worse during this all, each contestant becoming more and more frantic to escape.

Finally, a certain girl scraped her knee on the broken glass, falling next to gasoline, and disconnecting her leg.

Groaning in pain, she attempted to crawl away, but it only proved useless as she took one last look at the burning helicopter, and saw that the gasoline and fire had connected.

"Oh fuck." Lizzy cursed, and it was the last thing she could say as she, along with the chopper, was blown into oblivion.

The explosion was so massive it had forced Clifford over and onto his back, and the only thought that went through his head was 'Well, that's one way to get rid of a body.'

And he was right. What had happened to the already ten dead bodies that had been loaded on board?

It doesn't matter.

"Well, Vipers," Clifford started, standing to his feet, and dusting himself off. The contestants could only watch as the helicopter continued to burn, its old color blackened, and loose metal all over the grassy floor. "I'd suggest you get to the execution cabin."

"What!?" Daisy exclaimed in a fury, taking her eyes off the massive fire. "Lizzy just got decimated, and we still need to vote for someone!?"

Lane nodded. "What happened just moments ago was a freak accident. She died between a challenge and execution, and was a part of the losing team, so yes, you still need to vote for someone."

The Vipers' scowled. Would one of them still have to die?

* * *

The tension was at its peak tonight. The events from earlier today had set in, and it gave them the worry that nothing would ever be 'fine' again.

"You have all casted your votes." Lane spoke as Brendan locked the doors. He spun the tray on his fingertips, staring at each remaining Viper member.

"The ones safe tonight are as follows…" He picked up the marshmallow, and squeezed it in his hand. "Alexei."

The hiker caught his marshmallow with a fearful shake. He wasn't going to die tonight.

"Emily."

The loner caught her marshmallow smoothly, attempting her best to look as fearful as the others.

"Daisy."

The girl scout caught hers out of the air, blinking her eyes, as though she wasn't sure if she made the right call.

"Eduardo."

The wannabe charmer caught his marshmallow, breathing slightly.

The fear scaled up by the hundreds as Chloe and Timothy both looked fearfully at each other. They were the last ones left, and one marshmallow on the platter.

Clifford enjoyed the looks on their faces, both of them literally shaking. Neither of them wanted to lose the other.

He decided it went on long enough, and tore the marshmallow in two. "Both of you."

They could hardly believe it. They were alive. They were alive.

"Smart." Lane spoke, handing over the marshmallow platter to Brendan as the back door opened behind him. "Lizzy received the most votes, which means none of you get to die today."

It was another cart that was wheeled in, but what was on it, no one wanted to see.

Jordan wheeled it around in front of Clifford, and stepped away, allowing the sadist to take in what was left of Lizzy's body.

Her legs and arms had been torn off in the explosion, and her body was burned to a literal crisp. Her skin had been burned off her face, leaving only bone, and the same with her hair.

She looked absolutely disgusting.

"Consider the rest of you lucky." Lane told them, examining the dead body further. "You could've ended up like this."

None of the contestants could look at the body, and especially not Clifford. All they could do was watch him as he left the cabin, and shut the door behind him.

"Well, wasn't this quite the turn of events? Old friends, new rivals? And it all ended up with one massive explosion? Well, find out the next person to become executed next time on Total Drama Zenith."


	11. Deal with the Devil

**AN: I don't really know what to say here, other than 'yay! Another long chapter!' I had to cut some scenes out because if I kept them in, then the chapter would've been way too long. I like to write long chapters, but when they end up being 15,000 words long, no, I think I'll have to cut something out, y'know? Anyway! It's review responding time!**

 **ShadowJcreed:** Yes, this guy gets it!

 **AZW330:** Well, I'm glad you liked that, because I think the rest of the chapters are gonna start like that, to! And something paranormal, hmm? Some of that is answered, but, personally, I think it comes down to how you look at it.

More parts of the challenge will actually be seen in this episode, and plus, the reason I cut the challenge so short in the first place was because the chapter would've ended up too long. But, yeah! I'm glad you liked Chloe's backstory, though I don't think I've really explained all that much about her background yet!

Timothy quitting the challenge was going to be shown in that episode, but, again, it would've made the chapter too long, so, I had to cut it out. But, that means you guys can just use your imagination why! Or at least, until I/if I reveal it. As for what happened to Damien, Harvey snuck into that shed just to make himself known to the president. And, as a trick, they let Deveraux out, but once the teens would be far enough away, the would recapture him and lock him back in his cell. Clearly, it didn't go as planned.

And thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter!

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare:** Thank you! Yeah, fun fact, Lizzy was actually supposed to go in the episode Jack died, and in the same way, but I decided against it at the last second. And I mean, really last second, I changed it as I was writing the chapter, last second.

 **ThorBringsTheThunder:** Thank you! I get you, I'm the same way, I think!

* * *

Deal with the Devil

There was a time when sunlight bathed over the surface of the Earth. A time so long ago that only seems like that of a forgotten memory. Centuries ago, the sun would always touch everything in its sight.

Not anymore.

What has changed since then to cause darkness to almost consume our universe? The universe of those people living? Well, actually, the answer is quite simple. Evolution.

The evolution of all animals. Everyone is an animal, even the worst kind of people. And yet, society doesn't seem to recognize that.

But, then there is a difference between animals and humans. Animals and humans are two different things.

Clifford Lane, however, is an animal. A malicious animal with no remorse for what he does. A complete psychopath, cruel and uncaring for what he does.

An absolute monster.

And that same monster stood on the dock of Paspinêw Island, but it was clearly evident something was off about him. He looked completely devoid of emotion, a blank look on his features.

Lane tapped his fingers along his umbrella handle, not even bothering to hold it above his head as the rain poured down in a rhythmic fashion.

"Previously on Total Drama Zenith, the teams were separated into what was possibly the most boring challenge to date."

His smile returned, and he seemed to return to the evil bastard he was.

"But, there was some heartfelt blackmail going on between two key individuals: Emily, and Erica. Perhaps that will lead to quite an interesting execution as the future progresses.

"Unfortunately...for our contestants, we had to take an emergency shot at ex-intern Harvey, for being now an ex-interpol. The hope in their eyes must've been glorious, and especially to see them yanked away by an unknown force.

"While our victims think getting to the end of the competition, they don't seem to notice that I'm the one holding all the cards, but something not up to my control is how they vote each other off. And as we close in on our final ten, we do have to wonder who the next one to die will be?

"The answers to those questions will be answered on an all brand new episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

A bright white room in a dark underground bunker. It is interesting, isn't it?

This was the same place two certain individuals have been, and yet neither of them know where it is. Chloe and Hunter. When you are in a desperate situation, people tend to do whatever it is they can in order to survive.

But, why is it that it also refuses to remember where it was you were in the first place?

Standing behind a thick five inch protective glass, Clifford watched with interest as the sound of a motor blade came to life on a circular saw, held in the hands of Jordan, looking at the crispy burnt body in front of him, on a silver board.

Whoever this used to be, they were almost completely unrecognizable. Although, from the shape of the hips, they had definitely been a female.

Clifford disliked the opera music that Jordan was playing inside the room, it felt...too cliché.

Bringing the saw down to her neck, the intern began to cut through, the sound of flesh tearing was almost music to Clifford's ears.

"I'm sorry about Damien." St. Clarence apologized, he too looking through the glass. However, he forced himself to look away before he found himself too nauseous to talk.

"Don't be." Lane replied, almost unaware he was leaning on his umbrella again. "It was just a minor setback in a major operation."

"Setback?" St. Clarence cried, pressing his back to the glass. "The guy is dead! Your best friend! And you don't even care?"

"Oh, I'm furious." Clifford admitted calmly, glancing towards St. Clarence, who seemed to get his usual cold demeanor back.

"What's the word on Hunter?" The brainwasher asked.

"He seems torn." Lane exclaimed, finally looking away from Jordan, and setting his full attention on St. Clarence. "Torn if he's 'evil or good'." He used air quotes at the end of his sentence, and turning away.

On the other side of the room, the mechanical saw finally scrapped against the silver table, and the head of whatever female contestant this used to be, rolled off and onto the floor, prompting Jordan to lift his foot away from the ball of burnt flesh.

"And the challenge? It's been a day since the crash, and there wasn't one yesterday." St. Clarence recalled, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"This," Clifford gestured towards what Jordan was doing, "This is the next challenge. Jordan is just preparing it."

The brainwasher tilted his head to look over his shoulder, just in time to see the new 'intern' drop the head into a bucket of acid, and all but forced to watch as it would slowly eat away at the flesh until all that was left was the skull.

"It'll be a fun one, I think." Clifford exclaimed, watching closely, and blind to that St. Clarence was no longer viewing the scene. "But why did you care?"

St. Clarence shrugged his shoulders, pushing off the glass and straightened himself out. "Just curious."

"Uh-huh." Was the response. "I think I'll talk to you later, Jerome." Lane turned away, and without even looking at St. Clarence, he began walking away, the sound of a light tapping from his umbrella hitting the ground every other step.

It really was almost ominous. But then again, so was everything else on this island.

* * *

The moonlight flushed out only a fraction of darkness along the island, and pellets of water splashed against the soil of the earth.

After that helicopter crash, and Lizzy's death, it really did point to one thing: they couldn't escape. And upon realizing that, it meant that only one person would ever get to leave this island alive.

And each of the twelve remaining contestants all hoped that it would be one of them. Yet, that only goes double for two certain lovers.

As that talk between Clifford and St. Clarence had been occuring, no one seemed to know that a young man with brown combat boots was wandering through the graveyard, turning over small stones, and looking behind trees.

Days after this competition had started, Lane had told them that there were three immunity idols somewhere around. And as far as he knew, no one had found them yet, or even bothered to look.

Of course, the reason for that probably had to do with the fact that Clifford had mentioned it so briefly, one time, and after he revealed the dead bodies of Krystal and Travis.

Jace ran his hand through a pile of wet dirt over the top of a grave. Would they have hidden it in one of the graves? It is possible, Clifford and his crew are all insane.

He had made it his main objective to get out alive, whether it be through backstabbing his team or alliance members, or attempting mind games, he would have to get out alive one way or another.

And the immunity idol would help him succeed in that regard.

As he searched, he failed to notice a certain puppeteer walkling slowly, closer and closer to him. Unknown to him, however, was that this wasn't that girl at all. But, perhaps someone else entirely.

Raising her hands to her top hat, she tilted it slightly, making sure it was facing straight, and wasn't to be at a slanted angle.

"Hello, Sly!" Nebiros finally called, waving Irina's hand.

Jace froze in his tracks, feeling his heart pounding in his chest. Christ, what could she want?

Slowly, he cocked his head over his shoulder to see the girl walking closer, stepping over the dirt pits of where the graves are.

Even after Nebiros had 'taken over', he never learned the names of the contestants around him. Instead, he would call them based on their main personality traits.

After all, he did have an extra day to observe everything around him...or her, depending on the way you look at this entire situation.

Turning away, the shadow let out a light "What do you want?"

"I just wanna talk!" Irina's voice exclaimed, and stepping right behind Jace, watching over his shoulder as he looked further for the immunity idol.

"Well answer me this," Jace turned with a glare, and looking Irina in the eye. "What do you keep calling me Sly?"

Irina shrugged. "Because it's fun." Before Jace could move anywhere, she put her hand on his shoulder, restricting his movements. "Now, I've been thinking to form a partnership with someone, and I chose that someone to be you."

Jace looked perplexed at her sudden boldness. Only a couple hundred hours ago, Irina was one of the quietest people on the island, keeping to herself.

Now, however, she was much more forward, and always so sudden. It was strange. Almost her entire personality shifted, where she was almost an entire different person.

It came so suddenly, where at one point she would was just her usual quiet self, and then just out of the blue, she was almost a completely different person.

"How forward." Jace couldn't help but smirk. "But I'll have to decline."

Irina raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't find that a very good idea. If we lose another challenge, chances are that you're going to be the next one gone."

Jace frowned, his eyes lowering down to the dirt, and seeing that Irina's feet was only a couple inches from his, and she seemed completely oblivious to personal space.

"What are the chances?"

"Do I look like a computer?" Irina's eyelids closed halfway. "But, very high."

Jace glanced around briefly, crossing his arms in front of his chest. After what seemed to be a minute of thought, he dropped his arms to his sides and raised his left hand.

Without a second thought, Irina lifted her own right hand, and slammed it into his. "Glad doing business with you, Sly."

As they shook hands, neither of them noticed another female silhouette watching them from the distance. With Erica under her thumb, Irina would shift the balance of power into her hand. She would have a good vote on the other team.

And Jace? Perhaps he will become a more useful pawn. As long as he is in an alliance with Irina, then she can have an even further grip on this game.

But considering this situation, the only way she would be able to keep them in this position is with the use of blackmail.

She already saw enough, and turning on her heel, Emily started back to the main cabin.

* * *

What do children do? What do they do in their spare time?

Well, it all comes down to who the child is. But when your a child locked inside the body of seventeen year old, things can get pretty interesting. Either good or bad, depending on the situation.

And a situation on an island where teens are consistently dying, things will always go bad for this individual. After all, his first guardian was killed only a few days ago. Impaled in a coffin, and then her body incinerated in a explosion.

But, to rid himself of all of those deadly and terrible thoughts, Mickey sat cross-legged on his bed, and playing with a small stuffed bear. However, even then, that didn't stop him from having these bad thoughts. The only reason he stopped thinking it was when a knock on his door took his attention to someone else.

"Erica?" He asked in a quiet and innocent tone.

He was proved correct when the wooden door gave way, and he could just see the faint outline of Erica's athletic frame.

Stepping inside, the freerunner softly closed the door behind her, and made an approach towards the boy. She never asked, and nor did she care, the two of them were the same age, although one of them doesn't seem to show that, or his true age, well at all.

Erica's lean body sat down on the edge of Mickey's bed, eliciting the teenage child to look at her with a mix of both concern and confusion. He placed his stuffed animal beside him.

"I want to protect you, Mickey." She finally said after a long period of silence. The only sound they could hear was that of the constant rain outside. "I want you to get out of here."

"No." Mickey almost cut in. "What about you?"

Erica smiled that bittersweet smile to make someone burst out in tears. And a smile that did almost exactly that to the boy in front of her. "I doesn't matter what happens to me. You're too pure, Mickey."

His arms wrapped around her body in another hug, and placing his head on her chest, and beginning to wail.

"Promise me you'll never go!" He begged between sobs. Erica only just started to befriend him, to become a protector to him, but he already feels so attached to her. It almost feels like what happened to Roxie all over again.

"I promise."

It wasn't going to be a promise she would be able to keep. All she could do was keep Mickey happy in this dark place for as long as possible.

Erica knew she was going to die. She had come to terms with that already. But that wasn't going to stop her from getting Mickey out alive.

'Why is Clifford doing this to us?' Mickey had asked just the other day. They had been sitting on a tree stump, and Mickey was picking at the flowers.

'Some people are just born that way.' Erica recalled saying, sitting beside Mickey and placing her hand on his back.

'Born bad?' He looked confused. 'Why?'

A good question that deserved a good answer. But was the answer? Are people really just born bad? Or does it always come down to what happened in their lifetime? The early stages of their life?

No, as far as they know, Clifford Lane was just born as an evil bastard that enjoyed killing anything he could.

'I don't know.' Erica had answered honestly. 'I don't know.'

* * *

The rain that always poured down could be seen to some of the contestants as a setting to put the island in a eerie mood.

Fortunately for others, they put that out of their mind, and to them the rain was just a part of the island that wouldn't ever stop. But still, it is unfortunate for all of them.

A day earlier, Timothy had gone to search the forest just to find sights that he could show Chloe. And he had found one.

Around the center of the island, more or less, he had found a beautiful lake, shining a light teal color. It looked almost peaceful.

Regrettably, the optimist had to retreat back to the cabin, having believed Clifford would start a challenge. So, he had decided he would just have to show her today!

Currently, that was what he had managed. The couple stood in front of the lake, and Chloe had to agree it did have a beautiful look to it.

"It looks almost as beautiful as you." Timothy flirted suavely, causing Chloe's cheeks to burn. She turned towards him with a small smile.

"You are so cheesy." She smiled, and yet earning a slight chuckle from her boyfriend. "Hey, I never asked you," she started and averted her eyes from the lake, and instead locked with Timothy's. "You never told me why you auditioned."

See, that's the difference between some people, and Timothy. He is much more open about himself. However, if he were to tell those types of things to some people, it would only end in him with the likelihood of being executed.

In a game like this, people would do anything to survive. No matter the cost.

"I guess I just wanted to prove to people that you can win without being a downer." He confessed with a slight shrug, and his smile never coming anywhere near fading.

"That's nice." The conspiracy theorist nodded. "I only auditioned because I wanted to find someone that would believe me." She looked up at him with a loving glint in her eye. "I think I found something more than that."

She sat down on the grass, and curled her legs up to her chest, and continued to look into the lake, and ignored the raindrops. Within seconds, Timothy sat down beside her, and placed his arm over her shoulder.

Smiling, Chloe dropped her head onto his shoulder, and for a moment, everything was forgotten. For a moment, everything was perfect. For a moment, they couldn't have been been any happier.

"This is nice." Her smile only grew wider at the feeling of Timothy's hand beginning to unconsciously stroke her hair. With one sudden movement, she tilted her head to face him, their eyes locking with each other.

With a heart fluttering, she leaned in and brushed their lips together. Even if it wasn't as intense, fiery and passionate, as their first, it still felt delightful. Chills were sent up their spines almost simultaneously.

They felt that as long as they had each other, no one could hurt them. As long as they had each other, the tragedy around them won't seem as bad as it really is. They were both each other's solace, even if they didn't know it. They felt they were meant to be together.

But not everything lasts forever, as they were all but forced out of the kiss at hearing the bushes ruffle behind them, and the crackling of leaves.

Quickly, the couple sprang off of each other, both of them launching to their feet. It almost felt as if it was a mirror reenactment of the bear, what it felt to have happened weeks ago, now. That bear had nearly killed them, they could remember it as clear as day. But if this was a new one, then chances are that they won't be so lucky.

Unbeknownst to them, it wasn't a bear at all. Actually, it was a girl, standing on two feet, and pressing her back to the edge of the tree.

Daisy could hardly believe what she just witnessed. Did...Chloe kiss Timothy? Are they...an item?

Christ, this situation only gets better and better. How did she end up in this position? Why did she have to follow Chloe into the forest? Why couldn't she have just left her alone, instead of throwing herself into the mix of what felt like a star-crossed lovers story.

Her guilt took off like a rocket, kicked off up by hundreds of notches.

Chloe wasn't a mole working for Clifford. She just wanted to be with Timothy. Maybe she wasn't lying after all.

Daisy mentally cursed herself. How could she have been so ignorant and blind? People just want to believe what they want, and what she wanted was Chloe to be a mole, working for Clifford.

She was both happy she was wrong, but also horrified at what it was that she had to discover in order to know that.

'Fucking idiot!' Daisy cursed herself, still, she couldn't believe it. Why didn't she just leave her alone?

Question is now, should she leave them alone, and pretend as if she saw nothing? That a relationship between Timothy and Chloe would never happen? Or should she confront them, tell them that she saw it, and apologize for what she did to the theorist only a little while ago?

The choice seemed obvious.

After all, confrontation is inevitable.

Finally, time seemed to speed up as she stepped into their full view, holding her arm with a guilt-ridden look, something that others would notice she hadn't done before. Daisy was a girl that mainly kept to herself, and refused to show when she felt guilt or anything.

Instead, she would show emotion such as anger and such. Obviously, there is a very good way to tell between two emotions, one as fake, and the other as real. But, which one would it be?

"So, you two are dating?"

Chloe inadvertently took a step back, edging towards the mouth of the lake, a look of pure horror on her face, while Timothy did look worried, he didn't look as worried as his girlfriend was.

"Please don't tell anyone!" The conspiracy theorist begged, feeling her knees wobble underneath her, and almost causing her to fall to the grassed floor. She said it almost the same manner she had to Timothy the day they had started their relationship.

Timothy knew that if Daisy told anyone, it would only result in their deaths sometime down the line. Christ, how bad could this go for them?

Daisy looked between the two lovers. She knew that if someone else ended up discovering their relationship, they would use it to their advantage. Their own personal gain.

"I'm not." Daisy responded. "I want you to know, Chloe, that I was wrong."

It takes a lot for someone to admit when they are wrong, especially teenagers. Although, if they were going to say 'I'm sorry', then they most likely wouldn't be the average type of person. At least, not in the form of this small rivalry that had begun between the two girls, even if had been one-sided.

Fiddling with her hoodie sleeves, Chloe glanced around nervously. "Why?"

Daisy scoffed. "I've told you this before, but if you really want me to repeat myself: no one here deserves to die. But I'm not one of those people to go out of my way to make sure the threats are voted off."

Turning her back to Chloe without another word, the girl scout ambled off, having felt a great deal of relief flow over her. Even when she knew that she was wrong, that didn't mean that she knew relationships in this place was a good idea. If anything, it is the exact obvious.

Idiotic.

In the unusual circumstances where the contestants are being forced to vote each other off, and the sadistic host of theirs kills them in stupidly callous way, then yes, having romantic feelings for the others wouldn't exactly be a bright idea, would it?

Even as Daisy left them behind, Timothy looked down at Chloe's shorter form, and she still shook from the confrontation.

"We'll be okay." He promised, hugging his girlfriend tightly, replaying the events in his mind. "We'll be okay."

Would they, though? Perhaps now would be the time that they could form an alliance? A way that would prove that he was right after all, that they would be okay?

* * *

Transitioning. An interesting word, isn't it? The change of scenery to that of someplace else.

It happens all the time, both in television and in real life, and you never really notice it, do you? Unless, of course, you think about it.

Transition doesn't always mean by scenery, however. It could also be the definition of a change in personality. Something that happened to Lizzy about a quarter through the first half of this…'season' of Total Drama.

She seemed to be so kind at first, unfortunately, she was the first to fall to the hands of stress. Her attitude changing significantly, and overall more hostile towards the contestants such as Chloe, or the other more interesting people among the island. Hell, she wasn't afraid of talking back to Clifford despite being very aware of the consequences.

His interactions with Lizzy flowed through Alexei's mind. Poor girl. She didn't deserve to die, the game just pushed her.

After taking a sip of water from a styrofoam cup, he placed it back on the table of his team. Across from him seated Eduardo, eating what looked like his 'second lunch' as he put it, a burrito.

Sadly, for Alexei, Eduardo seemed to take notice of this. "Still sad your girlfriend died, señor?" He semi-taunted, though trying to keep himself 'professional'. It didn't exactly work too well.

Alexei glanced up from his long unbroken stare at the table. "Um, I don't swing that way, Eduardo."

"Oh, Hike's homosexual?"

Alexei couldn't help but inwardly groan at the sound of Irina's voice as she entered the cabin, twirling what looked like a long twig in her hand as she sat down at the table opposite of him.

Seeing this as a possible advantage, Eduardo turned himself around and flashed Irina a grin. "And what would you be, señorita?"

Irina frowned, dropping the stick to the floor as she stared at Eduardo with a disinterested look. "I'm Demisexual, Vain."

Eduardo's brow shot up. "Vain?" He repeated.

Alexei turned his head to look back down at the table as Irina proceeded to explain her nickname for the wannabe charmer. He could only just remember what Irina did to him the day Lizzy died.

* * *

 _Flashback to Those Kinds of Things_

 _He hadn't had a choice but to be tugged along by Irina Shishkin, and forcing them further up the trail in the forest._

 _Normally, Alexei would've felt at ease when exploring his surroundings, or more typically, hiking up a mountain, taking in the beautiful sights around him._

 _Not now, however. On this island, what was there to see? The rain practically concealed everything, nothing could be hidden forever. Nothing._

 _"Where are we going?" Alexei had asked, scanning over his surroundings in which, in the unlikely scenario where something should happen to Irina, he would know his way back to camp._

 _"I thought you were enjoying this, Hike?" Irina inquired stopping herself from moving, and spinning around to face the hiker._

 _"I enjoy it when I know where I am." Alexei politely countered, shoving his one free hand into his pocket._

 _"But then what's the point of exploring the new places?" Irina asked, tilting her head to the side, mocking a confused gaze. Something that only made Alexei that much more confused._

 _Irina smirked that of what could be considered devilish, placing both her hands on his chest. "How strong are you?" She asked, as if trying to feel the muscles beneath his shirt, something that caught him so off guard._

 _"What do you mean?" He asked, noting Irina's strange behavior so much more._

 _"It's an important question, Hike. I need to know." She hadn't stopped, almost tracing his muscles through his clothing._

 _"I...work out whenever I can." Alexei shrugged, still not entirely sure what the puppeteer meant about it._

 _She paused, glancing upwards for a moment, and then bringing her eyes back down to his. "Good" She spoke simply, and pushed her hands forwards._

 _It had been an act that took Alexei by complete surprise, and attempting to catch himself too late as he felt his body topple over the edge of trail, and knocking the two of them to the gravel floor._

 _However, one of them was much more lucky than the other._

 _Because until that very moment, Alexei hadn't known that behind him was a large ravine. It had been the reason Irina stopped there and nowhere else along their little hiking trip._

 _Grabbing hold of a root in the dirt, Irina held on as Alexei desperately hung onto the side of the cliff, desperate to hold onto the handcuffs that connected the two of them._

 _It had all happened so quickly. He stared up at the demon as he felt the handcuffs' chains start to pull._

 _'Shit!' Alexei cursed inwardly. Where was he supposed to hang onto!?_

 _"Don't worry, Hike!" Irina calmly told him, still holding tightly onto the branch, and preventing her own fall. "You'll be fine!"_

 _Alexei opened his mouth to say something, but he never got a single word out as the chains snapped, and sent the hiker into the water below. He had been lucky it wasn't a long drop._

 _Satisfied, Irina nodded in knowing she had ridden her opponent, and knew that he was still alive, if not only scratched a bit._

 _From under the water, Alexei had managed to make out the blurry figure of Irina stand up, and walk away._

 _What the hell just happened?_

* * *

The sound of a speaker interrupted his thoughts.

"All contestants, please report to the cabins, all contestants, thank you!" Clifford's voice rang out.

And so the devil finally speaks.

One by one, the contestants all filed into the cabin, either from their cabin rooms, or from somewhere outside, in Chloe, Timothy, Emily, and Jace's case. Clifford Lane had already made his way in with his umbrella, tapping its pointed edge against the wooden floor in a rhythm that would make anyone fear Lane, had they have any idea who he is.

Each contestant that sat down at the tables had a dreaded feeling, and one that deserved a saving spot for everyone. They all knew they would have to vote off yet another one of them.

By the end of the day, another one of them would no longer be walking the Earth. All that would be left of them would be a memory, and the lifeless shell of someone that used to live inside.

Every time those contestants were called in for a new challenge, they all felt wary and dreadful for the next execution. Soon, someone would be murdered. Soon, someone would be killed at the hands of their team. They die in a way only Clifford Lane designed, and just for them.

And with only twelve players left, none of them could deny that the merge was right around the corner. Then, it will be everyone for themselves, where they would have to kill their former teammates in order to survive.

Where they would have to kill their friends to survive.

Finally, the last person entered the room, and Jace sat down at the Phoenixes table with both a look of smugness and annoyance in his eyes. Both of them caused for different reasons. On one hand, he was the member of a new alliance. On the other, he still couldn't find that damn immunity idol.

Perhaps someone had already found it?

No, no, that isn't possible. No one could have found it yet, but when Jace does, then they will want to find them.

"Ready for your next challenge?" Clifford asked almost politely, using one hand to lean on his umbrella cane as his other watched down over a photo in his hand.

Turning around to face the board of the twelve deceased contestants, he slowly reached up with the new photo, adding unnecessary tension as he placed the new photo in front of the image of an impaled Roxie.

Half of the cast didn't want to look. Instead, all they saw was a burnt corpse. Her charred remains almost to the point of unrecognizability. If they hadn't known it was Lizzy, it would be unlikely anyone would ever know the girl. Of the cast, that is.

She had been burned beyond recognition, having both her legs either had been blown off her body from the explosion, or burnt so severe that they had simply fallen off when she had been moved. Her skin had been burnt off, leaving a charred and blackened skull. The only recognizable features about her was the thin strips of hair remaining on her head after the explosion.

Seeing the photo, those who hadn't seen it, such as Jace, almost vomited at the sight of the picture. He didn't have a very strong stomach, so seeing such a brutal death and its aftermath was so much worse than a simple shot to the head.

Hell, even Jerome's woodchipper execution left him queasy, but this? This was something else.

"Now, as for your challenge," Clifford started, taking his hand away from the board and folding his hand to signify someone to come forward.

And someone did. The person who did was Brendan, bursting through the door with a trolly and a very disturbing sight. Something that no one ever really wanted to see.

Wheeling the trolly through the center of the tables, small gasps could be heard as it was wheeled up to Clifford. And once he did, the sadist seemed to look over each of the items inside.

After what felt like ages of thought, he reached down and grabbed one of them, slowly bringing it up to his eye level.

In his hand was the head of Jewel Moore, only, her skin had been completely cut off after the explosion, and leaving what looked like a slightly broken skull, with small cracks edging through its stop.

Jordan certainly did do a good job at ridding the skin from the body, even if all it was was just burnt remains.

"Your challenge today is to find three skulls of your former contestants allies. The team to make it back to camp and deliver the most skulls wins the challenge. And thusly, they don't get to vote off a teammate to execute."

"You want us to find skulls of dead contestants?" Jade clarified out of disbelief.

"Yes, isn't that what I said?" Clifford smirked, dropping the skull into the trolly, and leaning on his umbrella further, crossing his legs as he did so.

"Do we at least get to know who we are looking for." Alexei asked, drumming his fingers along the table.

"If want to feel that much more guilty, then the skulls belong to Ted, Krystal, and Travis." Clifford shrugged uncaringly.

"Ah, Delusion, Mad, and Lust." Irina kicked back, spinning herself around and kicking her feet up on the bench, placing her hands behind her head. It made her that much more uncharacteristic, and was something Emily took note of.

"Need I remind you you all have a challenge to complete?" Clifford never stopped smiling, but picked at his nails, and seemed overall uninterested.

"Your inner Chris is showing." Jace couldn't help but quip, resulting in a swift movement that almost no one had saw coming.

Reaching into his coat pocket, Clifford produced his Ruger, and pointed it directly at Jace's head. "Don't compare me to that pathetic little man!" He threatened, forcing himself to not pull the trigger of his pistol.

All of this had happened in a manner of three seconds, with Jace turning from smug to worried for his own life, as he stared down the barrel of the devil's gun himself.

The sadist lifted his pistol back up, and un-cocking the Ruger, before dropping it down back into his coat pocket. Tilting his head to the side, he seemed to calm down in an instant. Or perhaps he was simply faking coming down from this sudden wave of anger in a normally calm individual.

Taking a deep breath, Clifford looked back up at the others with a crooked smile. "Begin." He ordered, and placing his hand on his umbrella cane.

* * *

All it took was a simple line of words to get them going. No one wanted to be forced to vote off a teammate, but what other choice did they have?

Clifford held all the cards. As from what they saw from that little outburst he had in the cabin, he would pull his Ruger on someone and fire it as soon as someone even thought about running at him with a fork.

But even then, they still don't know how well of a shot Lane is. All they know is that he is quick with his hands, and able to pull a gun on someone within mere seconds.

Despite the scene, they had discovered at least one shown weakness: don't compare him to Chris McLean.

Some of the contestants could only question why, but does it even matter? All that does is that they have something that could be used against him. Although, it could be quite foolish if they did.

Currently, the Vipers ran only a few feet in front of the Phoenixes, with the slightly less athletic opponents at the back of each of them.

"I...can't believe...we're looking...for...skulls of...dead team...mates!" Eduardo panted, just barely keeping up with Timothy, being another teen right in front of him.

"It's Clifford. What would you expect?" Emily ridiculed.

Before Eduardo could return an insult, he felt the ground shake beneath him. And clearly, he wasn't the only one.

The teams stopped in place, and everyone felt a rumbling in the ground, shaking all of them. At first no one moves, their brains unable to make sense of the input from their ears and feet. The ground is moving and the noise is like extended thunder only worse because the vibrations are coming from below. Then like a switch has been flicked, everyone moves for safety, all of them on the autopilot mode that all consuming fear creates.

"A fucking earthquake!?" Jace screamed in disbelief, making a run for a tree to press himself against the trunk of a tree in the hopes to protect himself, even if his own personal logic didn't make too much sense.

The ground tore in front of them, the dirt and soil becoming ripped apart as the ground shifted in a way it shouldn't.

As one ledge raised further up into the sky, the other dipped down, as if it had become a ramp to slide down. Only that it was a long drop down into something that no one knows below.

The ground caved in around where Eduardo had started to run, sending him to the dirt floor. And before he had the ability to stand up, he was sliding down the small ramp, unable to keep himself safe due to the wet dirt from the constant rain.

Powerless to grab onto anything, he ultimately slid down to the giant crack in the Earth, and fell through with a deafening scream.

No one was able to comprehend what had just happened to one of their teammates, as the ground shifted again, creating an even larger dent in the ground, one that forced Erica to push Mickey forward as she slipped forward, and tumbled backwards into the crevice, disappearing from the human eye.

Before anyone could move to a safer position, the sound of roots giving way alerted Irina to a tree, and collapsing right on top of her.

Quickly, she jumped out of the way, and unintentionally on the slippery wet ground, resulting in her collapse. Clawing at the floor much like Eduardo had before her, Irina looked fearful for the first time, and she too fell into the crevice bellow.

The ground seemed to separate even further, and unknown to a certain two contestants, they stood in a very wrong place. Across from the pit, a tree seemed to be on a bit of strain, and before anyone knew it, its root ripped up from the ground, and whipped the two.

While Emily screamed out of shock, Chloe went wide-eyed with panic, both of them reaching the edge of the crevice. Fortunately for Chloe, she felt the hand of her boyfriend wrap around hers, and stopping her from falling. Emily, on the other hand, hadn't been so lucky.

The loner missed to grab onto a ledge of root, and fell to the bottom of the hole in the ground with a shriek.

Smiling lightly, Timothy started to pull Chloe up with as much strength as he could. His heart had been pounding, but now it had fallen to a semi-normal rate as he pulled her back up to safety.

Just when he thought the quake had ended, there seemed to be one final shake, and Timothy's grip loosened. He could barely watch at all as Chloe fell into the cave below with a look in her eye that terrified Timothy.

For minutes, nobody moved. But when someone did, it had been Jace, making sure to keep his feet as far away from the little opening in the ground as possible.

Well, that was until he almost fainted at hearing the voice of one of his teammates.

"You all landed on me!" A furious Eduardo shouted at those around him within the cave.

With his eyebrow raised, Jace circled around the pit, and leaned over as far as he could with what could be considered a look of concern. "You're alive?"

"Of course we are, Sly!" Irina shouted up. "It wasn't even a real earthquake! Judging from the craters in the wall, Avenue set off some kind of explosion."

"Then it was a shockwave." Jade realized. Whatever that 'earthquake' was, Clifford had used bombs just to separate them. Or perhaps he simply just used them to scare the absolute living shit out of them?

Timothy sighed a breath of relief. Most of the cast members knew that Chloe and him were close, so it wasn't at all surprising to see that he was relieved. Although, some people such as Emily and Jace would call it stupid to become close friends with someone. After all, if you wanted to survive, you had to let your friends die.

Placing a hand on the optimist's shoulder, Timothy turned his head slightly to see Daisy nodding her head backwards, as if telling him that they should run.

He contemplated. If Chloe was still alive, then chances are that she would be fine. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if she had been harmed.

Daisy turned away and quietly sauntered off, with both Timothy and Alexei following her example.

As they left, the Phoenixes took their time to regroup. Hunter in particular looked the most nervous, though the reason behind it was unknown. Or perhaps he had become afraid of the dark after so long in a dark room, listening to the same song being played over and over again.

Even as the others left, the kleptomaniac seemed to be the only one to realize that the Vipers had vanished. "Where did they go?" He asked in what was probably a shaken voice, glancing around.

The others only then seemed to notice, with Jace, Jade, and Mickey all looking around them, and all of them failing to spot anything.

"Well, they're gone." Jace scowled in annoyance. "Pay them no mind, we gotta find the skulls." Before anyone could argue with him, the shadow had already set off in a random direction, not caring if it was the way back to the main campground.

Following him, Mickey and Hunter left Jade looking in the hole. She had to remind herself that Erica was down there. But, to her, Erica wasn't a friend anymore. She always seemed so cold and uncaring, and it was unnerving.

If anyone down there is a psycho, it is definitely her!

Oh, Jade. How wrong you are.

* * *

"So, señoritas, do any of you have an idea of how we get out of our predicament?" Eduardo politely asked, clearing his throat. He ignored the giant bruise that had already begun to form on the center of his forehead.

The girls looked to each other. Well, minus one. Erica had looked up at the hole in ceiling of the cave they had fallen into.

One by one, they had fallen into freezing cold water, and proceeded to pull themselves up onto the stone ledge to their side, some of them coughing up water while others looked much more annoyed.

"It sure is a shame that Hike isn't here." Irina spoke, tilting her head to look up at the hole in the ceiling.

"Or we can follow the water." Emily rolled her eyes, jabbing her thumb at the flowing water that they had crawled out of.

"We don't know what is over there." Chloe winced, recalling a certain memory involving herself, Timothy, and a bear.

"I hardly doubt anything is in this cave." Emily glanced over at Chloe, who in turn looked embarrassed, shrinking into her hoodie.

"I don't think we have a choice." Erica commented, walking past Emily and starting down the path. Quickly, Chloe joined her, desperate to get behind someone so she wouldn't accidentally fall into the water because of how dark this cave is.

Eduardo followed them, leaving only Irina and Emily. Taking one last look at the ceiling, Irina began her way forward, only to be stopped by Emily, standing in front of her.

"Who are you?" She cut right to it, and only partially taking Irina aback.

"What do you mean?"

Emily narrowed her eyes. "Irina is a quiet person, so why are so talkative all of a sudden."

Irina rose an eyebrow. "You're kidding, right?"

"And the weird nicknames? The talking to yourself? How do we know you don't have a secondary personality?"

"I'm sorry, I am not a secondary personality." Irina shrugged. "But, I can tell when I've been caught."

Emily smirked in victory. "So who are you?"

"You know who I am, Evanescence. You saw me on the plane, and you saw me get shredded through barbed wire."

Emily's brow rose. Oh God, what was that puppet's name? She had to think back on what had happened at the very beginning of this season. Had Irina ever even told anyone what her puppet's name was?

"Nebiros?" Irina had mentioned the name of her puppet once. Not to her, but when talking to herself, because every time she did, it only provided Emily an opportunity to eavesdrop.

"Bingo!" Irina leaned forward, clasping her hands together.

Emily glanced up at the ceiling, taking the hole into view before she looked back at Irina. No one was listening in on them, everyone would have gone to look for the skulls.

"Then what are you?" She asked.

"Why do you think Irina named me Nebiros?" She asked in what could be considered to be a giddy tone.

"You're a demon?" Emily asked skeptically, earning a frown from Irina.

"I guess you could say that." Irina shrugged. "But, if that's what you think I am, then I won't stop you."

Before Irina could start after the others, Emily spoke up with something that made her nervous. "I wanna make you a deal. And, considering that I know what you are, and a few deaths that happened at the same time you came into control, I think I can convince the others that you were the one responsible."

Irina slowly turned around to face Emily, who crossed her arms in a way that made her satisfied.

"Oh, very clever girl, Evanescence. But, what is stopping me from breaking your kneecaps and then drowning you?"

"Because then it would be obvious that you were the one responsible. And then Clifford would execute you without a proper elimination." Emily answered, uncrossing her arms as she glared, one so terrifying that made Irina think double about what she had wanted to do. What she had planned.

"I hardly have a choice, do I?" Irina noticed, weighing her options in her mind. On one hand, she would remain undetected, but would be under Emily's heel. On the other, however, she would never be able to escape, and die quite painfully.

"We always have a choice." Emily countered. "It's just that some aren't as bright as others."

Irina scowled with irritation. "Then I guess I have to take your deal." She offered her hand. A kind gesture, though it was only ignored, with Emily walking past her and reach the others.

Irina hadn't moved for a good solid five seconds, and when she did, she only just turned around to scan the area for her blackmailer. "Shit." She cursed, curling her hand into a fist, so tempted to just punch the stone wall.

Though, if she did that, it would be both stupid and painful.

* * *

The rented 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee rolled to a stop in the parking lot of the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. Detective John Corrow was here for a different reason than normal, actually.

As far as he knows, no evidence pointed to him during that fight with Graves on the bridge a couple days ago. That, however, most definitely stay the case for long. From the bullets that he had lodged into his bodes, they will find fingerprints on the bullets.

It only comes down to when they do.

Opening his door, Corrow stepped out of the car, and took a moment to gaze at his surroundings. The building in front of him hadn't looked new, and probably does need a new design to it.

It isn't the 1900s anymore, you should probably fix that up.

The morgue closes in about twenty minutes, so most of the people working here are going to be a bit on edge, and just simply want to go home.

He had a feeling that they may not want to be bothered, and luckily for them, if they just cooperate with him, they won't be bothered.

"Name, sir?" The person at the front had asked. Why did it feel like he had to sign in to everywhere he went?

Ah, there isn't a reason denying that he's a detective by any means, so…

"John Corrow." He said simply, placing his hand on the desk and taking in his surroundings that much more.

The inside looked much nicer than the bricked outside. Just overall, the building didn't look very nice from the outside, ugly, you could say.

"Name of the person of interest?" They asked, refusing to look up at Corrow.

"Simon Wagner." The detective answered, tapping his foot against the ground. Perhaps he should've used the other name? The one he is oh so famous for on television.

A pawn of Clifford Lane, and simply working at his side for who knows what reason why.

Why?

He could've just stayed in the dark, where everything was going his way. Why did he come out to do this to twenty-four teenagers, and be responsible for at least seven of the deaths.

How could anyone live like that?

That was what Corrow thought of as he started off, and looking for a certain number on the doors. He was only by himself because the young man at the front desk refused to go and take him, saying something along the lines of, "Man, give me a break. We close in fifteen minutes."

He couldn't help it. His mind wanders when he is doing stuff like this. Driving, looking, or even just eating. He never bothered asking anyone if they do the same thing, and not caring if it was supposed to be a normal thing that everyone does.

But more recently, one thing has enveloped all of his thoughts.

Clifford Lane.

People like him shouldn't ever exist. There shouldn't be any words to describe people like that. In fact, what do they even call this situation?

Teens are dying on international television, this entire situation should have a name, instead of using the famous 'Total Drama' show name. Using it would destroy the show that was broadcasted in the past with Chris McLean.

McLean showed his sadistic side more than once, but never once would he do something like this. Only the worst types of people would be able to, and Clifford Lane is one of them.

Clifford. Fucking. Lane. He is the incarnation of the devil himself, and as far as Corrow's concerned, he has probably topped the list of 'worst terrorists of all time list', and that is not a list anyone should want to be on.

"Ah." Corrow sighed, stopping himself at seeing the door with the numbers that he was told. Using the key the man at the wrong had given him, he unlocked the door, and opened it.

Then, he let the cool breeze of the cooling system inside come over him. He could only look at the covered body. Could he even look at him? After what he was involved in?

He shook his head. Anything would help further this case, even the small things.

Removing the sheet, the came face to face with a pale middle-aged man, with the sides of his black hair having started to gray.

"Simon." Corrow breathed lightly. The last time he saw him, he had tried to kill him on a bridge. And then, he was dead.

It was almost hard to believe that he was the cause of this man's death. Not to say the bastard didn't deserve it. He was Clifford's partner in crime. His, well, no. Saying that Lane had another half would be wrong.

Simon Wagner, Mallory Graves, whatever the hell you would want to kill him, prick, perhaps? He isn't Lane. He may not be as bad, but no way is it possible that he is Clifford's second half.

All he was was the triggerman. He had no say in what he thought was fair!

He was just an enforcer! Another part of a game that Clifford Lane was controlling, and it was infuriating.

Wagner wasn't a prisoner like the teens are because he has a say so in things. No one else did.

Simon Wagner was Clifford Lane's second-in-command. Does even have one anymore, or is he all alone with just interns?

Sadistic fuck, the only person on that island that deserves to die is Clifford, no one else. None of the teens, only Clifford.

And as long as he is investigating, Lane won't always be as free as he currently thinks he is.

He couldn't look at the body anymore. He forced himself to look away. Why did he come here? If only there was a way that he could find this damn island without breaking into the L.A. police station.

But, unfortunately, that will have to be his next stop.

Removing his phone from his pocket, he opened an app that may prove to be very useful.

He knew he only had so much time left, so he would have to hurry before he was rushed out of the morgue. After all, he if he was caught doing this, it would look super suspicious.

Raising Wagner's thumb, he swiftly pressed it against his phone's home button, and saving his fingerprint onto his hard drive.

Hearing footsteps down the hall, he pocketed his phone and tossed the sheet back over him and slammed slid his body back inside, and shut the door, locking it.

"Come on man, you gotta go." The man walked in, speaking both tiredly and moodily at once, only earning a nod in return.

His work here was done. Next stop, the police station for what could possibly the most sketchy place he would have to go to yet.

It isn't like he would be able to just walk in and look in the evidence room, anyway. He would have to break in. Kind of ironic, no? He is a detective!

* * *

"This would've been a lot easier if we had our teammates with us."

"Why are you blaming me!?"

The Phoenixes had continued through the forest without too much talking, the whole time they had only just walked. It doesn't matter which team was the first to return to Clifford, only the team that has the most skulls.

Both Jade and Jace were at each other's throats. Seems that the stress has started to claim another victim, shame it has to be another relatively nice girl, just like last time.

"Alright, fuck this." Jace cursed upon seeing the cabin in front of them. They had completely turned around, and, even if he didn't want to admit it, it was his fault.

"Well done." Jade clapped sarcastically.

"You three go look for skulls, I'm gonna go set some things up." Jace had started to walk off, but when Hunter repeated what he said in confusion, it stopped him. "If the Vipers get a skull, we'll get it from them."

Still, it didn't help them. Rather, it only made them more confused. What did that mean? They ultimately decided not to bother him, and the trio ran off and into the forest as Jace emerged from it, and spotting Clifford standing at the beginning of the trail, and holding his umbrella in his hands.

"Back so soon?" Clifford asked, noticing Jace's empty hands.

"Burn in Hell." Jace mumbled as he passed him. He didn't need all that much. Just to the right equipment to set a trap.

As he walked, he couldn't help but remember what Daisy did to him to get him off the cuffs the other day. While it wasn't as bad as what Irina did to Alexei, it still seemed that way to him. Naturally, he only thought that because he was the victim.

* * *

 _Flashback to Those Kinds of Things_

 _Jace had been forced to follow Daisy to the beach, where there was additional cameramen to the ones at camp. Seems a bit odd, perhaps to radio in to Clifford if someone attempts to escape._

 _Daisy played the game an interesting way. A way that felt as though she was stronger than the other players around them. There was no denying she was very strong, but why wouldn't some people see that as a threat?_

 _"Why are we here" Jace asked, looking around the beach and keeping tabs on the cameramen, a good half of them staring at them, as if daring them to make a run for the water, and start swimming away._

 _These guys are here because, should a contestant do something they aren't supposed to, they'd report it to Clifford, and then open fire on the contestants in the process of escaping._

 _"Can you stay quiet for more than five minutes?" Daisy sent a glare over her shoulder, just making out Jace's shape from behind her as she tugged him along._

 _"Sorry, but that doesn't sound like me." Jace couldn't help but snip back._

 _And then, before we was fully able to comprehend what was happening, Daisy spun around and grabbed him by his arm, forcing him further down the beach. She was too strong for him to fight back in any way._

 _The cameramen radioed in to Clifford what Daisy was doing, but they made no move to actually stop her._

 _Instead, they continued to film the episode as Daisy pushed Jace down into the water, and forcing his head down under, and holding it there._

 _Jace squirmed underneath her, his legs twisting and his hands resting on Daisy's shoulders and face as he tried to push her off of him._

 _Right before all air left his lungs, Daisy pulled him back up with a furious look, leaving Jace looking panicked._

 _"This bitch is crazy!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, and for the first time, he was relieved at seeing a cameraman on this show, walking towards them, and raidioing in to Clifford once again._

 _He couldn't make out what Lane said on the other end, there was too much static for you really make out. Or, well, he couldn't, anyway._

 _Whatever he did tell the cameraman, it made him a tiny bit more grateful when he bent down, and unlocked the cuffs, giving Daisy a look that seemed to dare her to pushing him underwater._

 _The cuffs came off, and, with one final glare, Jace ran off._

* * *

In the caves beneath them, Eduardo, Erica, and Chloe failed to notice a skull with a massive dent in its top as they walked by. It was too dark, to them.

But, that hadn't stopped Emily from noticing it, dropping down and picking it up. From the three contestants that they were looking for, she deduced the skull to belong to Travis.

Poor guy.

Out of those Krystal and Ted, he had by far the most brutal death as they come. His skull had been bashed in with a baseball bat. That's the type of thing you'd only see in a zombie apocalypse show, not real life!

Irina noticed this and crossed her arms. She decided that she doesn't care about winning. All she wants is to survive the game, and if that means to take down as many people as she can, then so be it.

"Wow, you're more psychotic then I am." Irina spoke as Emily seemed to examine the skull.

"Sociopathic, actually." Emily corrected, standing up. The most frustrating part about having this skull is the fact that you can't hide it.

"I see daylight!" Someone shouted. It sounded like Eduardo, but what does it matter. Irina and Emily went after them, and they saw that he was indeed right.

The opening of a cave proved it, but Emily broke into a sprint, pushing past Eduardo and Erica, and knocking Erica into the water with a shove.

It all happened so fast, but Chloe had spotted the skull in her hand and sprinted after her teammate.

Stopping, Irina glanced at Erica, who pulled herself out of the water, and Eduardo, who, despite being on Emily's team, remained where he was due to confusion. "Now that is no way to treat a lady." He shook his head, and winking at Erica.

"Come on, Gutsy, we don't need any slackers." Irina spoke, sending Erica a look, which, in turn, raised her eyebrow from her new nickname.

* * *

Jace tapped his foot against the grass impatiently, holding a meat cleaver after telling Lane his plan, who, to his relief, allowed him a sharp object. But not before warning that it will be taken away after either the challenge, or its purpose becomes irrelevant.

His ears perked when he heard the sound of feet stepping along the gravel path. It wasn't a walk, no. It was a run.

Jace rose the cleaver to a rope, preparing to slam it against the rope, his heart pounding. He could win his team the challenge right now.

A figure ran out from the gravel path with a skull in hand, and Jace slammed his hand against the rope, cutting it in half. And before anyone was able to realize what had just happened, a net sprung from the ground, and trapped the team inside.

"Jace! You idiot!" Came a male yell. Upon further inspection, and to his horror, he discovered that it was Hunter, Jade, and Mickey trapped inside, and a skull dropped to the ground.

Four pairs of eyes were sent his way in a glare, while and pair just looked around the net, completely confused as to how this happened.

Before Jace could make a move for the skull, he saw a short girl and a taller girl emerge from the forest, with the shorter one grabbing the skull off the ground.

"Aw, fuck." Jace cursed at seeing the sight run to Clifford. There was no point in trying to stop them, he lost, and was most likely going to be the one executed.

"Well done, Vipers." Lane smirked, taking the two skulls in the palm of his hands. From the hole in the back of one's neck, he determined that one of them belonged to Ted, while the one with its head caved in belonged to Travis.

Chloe cracked a smile, panting heavily while Emily crossed her arms, satisfied.

"Where's the rest of you?" He asked, although still smirking, looking out for the rest of the competitors, despite knowing very well where they are.

* * *

"I was worried about you." Timothy confessed.

It had taken a full hour for the rest of the contestants to find their way back to camp, even Alexei had trouble. Under normal circumstances, he would've been able to use the stars to find his way back to camp.

But, because of the constant rain, the clouds only covered the sky, and created a gray mess of color, shielding the beautiful blue sky from even leaking through the clouds, or even the sun, for that matter.

"I was fine." Chloe smiled at her boyfriend's concern. "It wasn't as bad as you'd think." She frowned. "Well, Irina was acting strange."

"Strange?" Timothy asked with a hint of confusion in her voice, and earned a nod from Chloe.

"She called me 'Scorn'." She revealed. "And, called Eduardo, 'Vain'."

Timothy thought for a moment, and then looked into Chloe's eyes. "I have an idea. I want to get us out of here alive."

Her eyes twinkled with glee, smiling. She enjoyed hearing Timothy's ideas, no matter what they were. He gave his own two cents about her conspiracy theories from time to time, and she had always enjoyed it.

Chloe removed her camera from around her neck and placed it delicately on the nightstand. Not that it was necessary, the water broke it earlier today.

"I think we should form an alliance." He frowned suddenly. "But, I'm not sure you'll like it. I was thinking about Daisy."

She raised an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I like that idea?

* * *

Inside Emily's room, both Irina and Erica both looked irritated to having to be there. Neither of them liked the position they were in, but what other choice did they have? It was either be cooperative, or risk being the next one executed.

"Who is it you would like us to execute, Evanescence?" Irina asked, fiddling with the brim of her hat as she spoke.

Erica was nervous, although she didn't show it. She wanted to make things right between her and Jade, and then she had promised to protect Mickey. The only people she wouldn't mind voting off would be Jace and Hunter.

But, unknown to her, Jace was a part of this alliance, if not directly. He was with Irina, not Emily, but still, that could change at any time.

"The biggest threat, I think." Emily spoke. "In terms of brains."

Erica internally cursed. Well, this was just getting better and better, wasn't it?

* * *

Jordan locked the door behind them as the Phoenixes sat down on the couches of the execution cabin. All of them had the chance of dying here, although two glares in specific were being sent to Jace, who looked peeved.

"Truthfully, I didn't quite expect you to lose this challenge." Clifford shook his head, taking the platter of marshmallows away from Brendan. "But, that is what makes this game that exciting! Not even I know who will lose!" He had exclaimed, spinning the platter on his hand.

"Now, obviously, you've all casted your votes, and they went from expected to unexpected." He grabbed one of the marshmallows, and prepared to flick it to the first of five of the living players.

"Mickey!"

Landing in Mickey's lap, he smiled and ate the marshmallow in two bites, all the while failing to notice a guilty look on Erica's face as she watched.

"Erica!"

It really was ironic that she was the next one to be called safe after him, who smiled brightly at his protector.

"Hunter!"

Hunter let the marshmallow bounce off off his chest and into his lap, he could hardly believe he hadn't gotten any votes. No votes, after what he had done. He shot someone. He shot someone…

"The rest of you," Clifford began, looking to Jade, Jace, and Irina, two of them with a shade of nervousness on them as they watched Lane wave one of the marshmallows in his hands, "received at least one vote."

"Irina!" He continued, pinching the marshmallow out of his hand, and letting it fly into the hands of the demon.

Jade and Jace cast each other glares as Clifford let the tension draw out between the two, holding the marshmallow between his thumb and forefinger.

"And finally...Jace!"

Raising his arm, he caught the marshmallow in a fist before it could sore over his head. Jade, on the other hand, looked shocked, feeling her legs go numb as she looked around her. Erica refused to meet her stare, while Hunter seemed to be the only one that was actually shocked at the turn of events.

"Well then." She spoke, feeling a coldness run through her as she stood up. "I can't believe it."

"Well, you'll learn to." Lane shrugged, smiling evilly and nodding to Jordan.

Before Jade could turn around to face Jordan, she felt a hand wrap around her forearm. And before she knew it, Brendan had wheeled in a table, with one seperate on top, and a saw blade at the end.

Jade choked back tears as Jordan led her onto the table, lying her down and strapped her in. She took one last look at Erica, who, for the first time during an execution, failed to hide her guilt.

"Don't trust her." Jade spoke as Jordan went to start the saw up, and Brendan circled around to the front of the table, standing by her head. "You don't know who she is."

It rose a few eyebrows, namely from Hunter and Jace, while Erica knew she was referring to her, none of her teammates seemed to make the connection.

Starting the saw, Jade turned to look straight up at the ceiling, with Brendan slowly beginning to inch her closer and closer to the saw.

"God, forgive me." She mumbled, and then, before she knew it, the saw had began to cut away at her waist.

Her screams were agonizing, and her teammates wanted to look away, but no matter if they did, they couldn't help but keep looking back.

Jade's screams only increased as the saw traveled further up her body, slicing through her body, and the sound of flesh ripping and screaming filling up the room.

Brendan's face was splashed with blood from the saw as he pushed her further and further in, and Clifford watched almost without blinking, a smile across his face the entire time.

The sadist almost hoped the blade would dull, only so that her death would be that much slower and painful.

At last, Jade's screams came to a stop when she fainted from all the blood loss, and by that time, the blade had started cutting through her stomach, with her blood spraying in every direction.

Finally, Jace stood up and vomited, collapsing to the floor from the sight, and forcing himself to look away. He couldn't do it anymore.

Mickey was silently sobbing, as Erica held him in an attempt to soothe him.

The only ones of the contestants to still be watching the execution was Hunter, who was wincing the whole time, and threatening to look away, and Irina, who watched with wide eyes and a possible interest as her teammate was sawed in half.

After what felt like hours of this horror, the saw reached the top of Jade's skull, and completely cut the girl in half. Meanwhile Brendan stepped away, his body drenched in her blood.

Jordan stopped the saw, and moved to unlock the door, and was pushed out of the way by Jace, who went to go vomit again.

Stepping outside, Clifford took a deep breath and raised his umbrella above his head.

"The game only keeps getting better, and now, we're down to eleven! Who will be the next one to perish? Find out next time on Total Drama Zenith!"

The show faded to black, as Jace could be heard vomiting again off screen.


	12. We're Going for a Ride

**Disclaimer: I own none of the songs inserted into this chapter.**

 **TheSaneSierra:** Thanks! I don't really know what to say other than that, sorry. And...maybe there will be another couple, you'll never know.

 **ThorBringsTheThunder:** Yeah, Irina is actually quite fun to write. The problem was that Irina and Nebiros' creator didn't give me too much of personality traits for Nebiros, so, I guess I added my own ideas to the batch. And if Mickey dies, it may break Erica, yes, or vice versa.

 **ShadowJcreed:** Yeah, for the first half of the season, I wanted to spend more time on developing characters rather than all of them running and searching for the idols, so made them become slightly forgotten for the most part. For the first half of the season, I really didn't know what to do with Jade, and then it hit me 'an unexpected friendship with someone'. Also, Jace is becoming one of the more major characters as the story goes on, and, though he doesn't appear as much in this chapter, it does kind of start to take form. By the way, Daisy wasn't going to kill him, just scare him enough want to get the cuffs off of them.

 **Keyblademaster avenger:** Sorry mate, the merge won't be coming for a little while longer. Besides, I think it would be quite a big merge with eleven or ten people, anyway. As for her deal...? Who knows, Emily is in a very secured position right now, so I don't think there's much to worry about for her.

 **AZW330:** Aw, I like your long reviews! Shame. But, that is a good movie! The immunity idols are slowly gonna get a bigger and bigger focus to the story as it continues. Also, I'm glad you like the little recap type of thing with the remaining survivors, cause you're going to be getting a lot of that. And truth! Big names are starting to fall away, things may start to get more and more interesting from here on in.

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare:** Thanks, and RIP Jade, you shall be missed...by some more than others.

 **WarriorAuthor1127:** It's fine! But, I'll be holding that to you. And, it's okay if you find the executions interesting, don't we all have a little bit of sadism in us? Probably, I dunno, I'm not a psychiatrist. By the way, thanks on submitting Brendan! Though he doesn't talk too much, I think he does make a good even out to Clifford's sadism.

* * *

We're Going for a Ride

An overwhelming of mist had covered the island just the night before the remaining eleven went to bed.

Over the course of the dreadful night, no one was aware what Lane and his interns had been up to, more so where they put Jade's body now that that situation with Harvey had occurred just four, three days ago.

Honestly, none of them could remember anymore, and none of them cared. After Clifford stopped their first two escapes from the island, none of them thought about escaping any time soon.

Every time they did, someone ended up dead. And so far, each time they did, it had never been for their benefit.

Now, Clifford Lane stood on the dock of Paspinêw Island and almost looking confounded at the sky, seeing the semi-gray clouds, yet no rain had a sign of coming down.

Tapping his umbrella against the dock, he brought his eyes back down to stare at the camera, almost just so the viewing audience could see the emptiness in him. To see the sort of look that he had that almost seemed to signify that Lane knew he was a deplorable, vile excuse of a human.

"On the last episode of Total Drama Zenith, the teams were forced into the forest in the search of heads of their previously dispatched teammates. However, because of the overall boring teams, I decided to split them up.

"With Timothy away from his beloved Chloe, how did he fare? Surprisingly, quite well. But, one couldn't day the same about Eduardo, who butchered his time in the challenge. It really is amazing how he has succeeded in lasting as long as he has.

"With Irina and Erica wrapped around Emily's fingers, one must wonder how long their 'partnership' will last for, and which one of them will be executed first? At the end of the day, Jace screwed his team over, but to his own personal fortune, Jade was the one to get the short end of the stick.

"Poor girl could only scream as she was cut in half. Now, only eleven remain, and by tonight, ten will remain in the game. So, who is the next one to go? I couldn't tell you, so we'll both find out together, once again, in another fantastic episode of the most brutal show on Earth, Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

Hours before the morning came, before the sunrise over the horizon, and before the rain temporarily would stop, a wheel of a wheelbarrow cut through the mud neatly as two pairs of legs stood at its side, and taking it to its location.

Lane and Brendan had been walking through the graveyard for about three minutes now, and really neither of them had actually said a word during it all.

In the wheelbarrow was Jade's body, cut in two, and her eyes closed due to fainting halfway through her execution.

After the...fiasco that had happened a few days ago, Lane had decided to drop off the bodies in the next best place, and somewhere that would be at least semi-normal in the real world.

Finally, the duo stopped in front of an open grave, and Brendan paid no expense by tilting the wheelbarrow upwards and allowing Jade's body to tumble out, and into the grave.

Taking one last glance at the body, Brendan turned his head in Clifford's direction, who hadn't taken his eyes off the body but seemed to feel his gaze bore into the side of his head.

"Clifford," Brendan had finally asked, "I know you've already dealt with McLean and McGillis, but...I had to wonder about Chef Hatchet?"

Lane turned away from the body in the grave and towards Brendan. "He will be taken care of." Brendan rose an eyebrow and gave Clifford the need to elaborate. "We don't know where he is." He returned to the open grave. "After McLean's death, Hatchet seemed to disappear off the face of the Earth.

"And, because he did, we can't find him. That's why I have an observer on a watch for our little detective friend. If anyone manages to find Mr. Hatchet, it will be him."

Brendan bit his lip. While he managed to connect some dots in his head, he still wasn't entirely sure with what Clifford said. "And what if he just told the police the island's location? Why hasn't he done that?"

Now Lane was chuckling quietly. "Hatchet is one smart cookie, isn't he? That's what makes him so difficult to find. But he hasn't emerged from hiding because of our favorite public spies: the paparazzi!"

Now Brendan understood, and he nodded, turning around to let his hand grip around the wheelbarrow handle.

"So as soon as the detective finds him, our friend, Grinik, will execute the both of them. If I didn't need him, I would've had Grinik assassinate him in a heartbeat. But then we'd all be in a pickle, wouldn't we?"

It seemed to unlock some doors in Brendan's mind. How they could get away with such a crime on such a massive scale.

It was obvious, wasn't it? After they finish the finale, he'll have to receive a lot of plastic surgery, burn his fingerprints, and change his name.

He had to admit it, though. He has killed people before, if not two or three people, all of them had been the same age as him, but all of them deserved it.

All of them had been assholes who got it on from hurting other people, whether the crime they commit. In his mind, they deserved it.

Lane is a conundrum, however. Does he deserve to die? Yes, probably. 'But do I deserve to die?' Brendan had asked himself.

No. Not to him.

See, that's the difference between himself and Clifford. Lane knows he's evil. He's said it himself in the past. Most memorable was after one of the challenges, and perhaps it had been Lizzy, who spoke up to him, and one of the few people that did have the guts to speak up to him.

'Why do you enjoy watching us suffer!? Watching us die!?' Lizzy had screamed during dinner and had sent Clifford a death glare that he could only smirk in amusement at.

'Can I just be an asshole for the sake of being an asshole?' Was Lane's response. His only response.

From each and every person on the planet, every dastardly bastard to kill an innocent person, to take someone's life, Clifford Lane must be the only person to have ever lived to be genuinely pure evil.

The difference between someone who is simply evil, and someone who is pure evil I'd quite simple, actually. The people who are simply just considered to be 'evil', such as Adolf Hitler, or Joseph Stalin, they were some of the evilest people to ever live.

But the difference between them and Clifford Lane is that they believe that they are doing something good. So, they are truly just horrible, and despicable people in which gave so many people a sigh of relief to see them dead.

Clifford Lane is a different story altogether. Unlike most people, if all people throughout history, Lane knows he's an evil snake.

Clifford Lane is the definition of pure evil, sadism, crafty, immoral, vile, what else can there be said? You, are the worst person to ever have been born.

It is curious, though. What did Clifford's parents first think after he had been born? Did they know he would become one of the most dangerous masterminds to conduct a terrorist attack?

Of course not. No one ever knows until it is too late.

* * *

Emily had been sitting on the edge of her bed for what felt to be fifteen long minutes and holding a photo of someone in her hands that no one on the island knew about.

It was in her nature to not allow anyone to see it. In fact, the only people to know about it is her parents and little sister. No one else.

The photo in question was that of a young man, perhaps in his late teens or early twenties who has been deceased for the last nine, or eight years ago.

And to put it bluntly, it was her fault that he was dead. At least, it was what she thought. It was that situation those many years ago that turned her into who she was now.

'God, kids are stupid.' She heard herself thinking to herself, running her hand over the glass frame of the photo, and removing her glasses after feeling the tears in her eyes.

The worst part about all of this was that she could still remember it all, as clear as day.

Her brother had just gotten his new car the other day and had come to pick Emily up from school after she got out.

And she found him rather quickly after her day in school ended and had crawled into the car, having allowed her brother to drive them off.

The experience was worse than anyone could have ever imagined. God, it was horrible, and what was worse was that she had been there to see the whole thing.

It had all started when they started to cross one of the bridges in Ontario, one of the places she lived before she and the rest of her family moved away.

And it all happened so quick.

Being the bored young girl that she had been, all she did was playfully annoy him with no other thought in the world. Well, that was until he briefly turned his head around to face her, and would've politely asked for her to stop.

But he never did get that far into a conversation with her.

Instead, all that happened was that, due to not looking for less than a second, he had slightly swerved off the road, and bumped into a car that had been driving beside them.

And then, all hell broke loose.

He looked up to see what he had done and attempted to move to correct himself a bit too quickly. Having been unintentionally turning into another car, and turned back straight too fast, his tires skid against the ground and slowed him down all at once, a car crashing into the from behind, the driver, too, having a terrified look on his face.

But it had been because of that that they had tilted over entirely, the car rolling over and over until it crashed into the side of the bridge, taking a chunk of the railing out, and the safety wires wrapping around the car just as it was about to go off.

The glass at the front of the car cracked and shattered, falling into the water below. So when Emily opened her eyes, she saw that, too her horror, they were upside down, and her brother almost looked unconscious, with a long cut of blood on the side of his face.

The only reason that they were still alive was that of the seatbelts that they were still strapped into. Except, one of the two hadn't entirely worked.

Emily's brother had thought they were safe, his eyes blinking open as he strained his neck to look at Emily. While he did look scared as much as she did, he wanted to at least attempt to keep a calm demeanor.

'We're okay.' Was his last words. The seatbelts that saved him seemed to betray him when the buckle snapped off, and without any warning, her brother had started falling thousands and thousands of feet below into the water with a scream.

He died right in front of her. He plunged thousands of feet into water that may as well be concrete.

She, on the other hand, had been saved from going over with him. Even she couldn't remember back then what her reaction had been to it all.

Emily folded the picture up with haste and wiped away her tears with her sleeve as she may need towards her drawers where her clothes were, and dropped the photo into it.

Taking one final look at it, she looked away as she placed her glasses back on her head, and made an effort to restyle her hair back into its normal look.

It had been because of that accident that she turned into the person that she is now. If things had gone differently that day, perhaps she would never even be on this show!

Of course, that isn't the case. But here, here she will do anything she can do to survive. She's made it into the final eleven, and she'll be damned if anyone tries to stop her from escaping this place alive.

Approaching her door, she opened it and almost at once came face to face with Eduardo, who had his fist raised to knock on the door.

Before he could speak, Emily sent him a death glare, and one so menacing that made the wannabe charmer seem to choke on his words, and stagger back a few feet.

Rather than say anything like he does to any one of the 'ladies he could seduce', he merely let Emily walk past him. Maybe it has been long enough. Maybe now it was time for him to fully take control of the game.

Because, in his mind, he's been playing Emily like a deck of cards. Oh, Eduardo. If only you knew how wrong you were.

* * *

In another room of the giant cabin two-story cabin, with two people sitting on the bed, their hands on the mattress and both of their hands on top of each other's.

The third person sat on a chair that had been facing a desk. Unlike some where they would spin it around to sit on, which Daisy had sat down, although swung herself around, and placing her hands on the back of the chair.

With their hands on each other's, Timothy and Chloe had a hard time not looking into each other's eyes, but a small blush was on their faces.

The couple's actions had never gotten more intimately than making out. They've said it more than once towards each other, 'I love you'. It was three words that they both loved hearing from each other.

Though they never said it themselves, to them, they couldn't do anything more than just making out, besides they felt that they were too young for two seventeen-year-olds to do anything more.

Daisy eyed their hands on the bed. It was in her nature to adore certain couples, and if they were in a different situation, then she would agree with them.

But now, now it is just stupid. Everyone left on this island plans to get out alive, but it only makes it so much more difficult for these two while both of them are a couple, and to get them out alive.

If she couldn't get out alive, then at least one of these two could then. And if they have the opportunity, then both of them.

"What is this about?" Daisy asked, placing her chin on the back of the chair, and yet sent the couple a suspicious look.

Chloe removed her hand from Timothy's and suddenly seemed to look uncomfortable. Her boyfriend, on the other hand, bit his lip in, which looked like nervousness on the surface, but internally it was hopefulness in that Daisy would agree with the alliance.

"I never got to tell you that I forgave you." Chloe twiddled her finger in genuine nervousness, nearly stumbling on her words.

Daisy rose an eyebrow. "Is that all you wanted to tell me?" She asked, preparing to stand up and just leave.

Timothy seemed to take notice of this and he quickly spoke up before she could leave.

"We wanted to ask you if you wanted to join an alliance."

This time it was Chloe who bit her lip, crossing her legs and swinging them back and forth as she stared down at the ground.

Daisy had already stood up, but at the sound of what Timothy said, she gazed at him with curiosity, before flicking her gaze over to Chloe.

"Why me?" She asked after a moment. After what she had done to Chloe just a couple days ago, shouldn't she be the last person the conspiracy theorist would want to see.

"We thought that...you deserved a second chance." Timothy smiled slightly, one that made Daisy feel confused. Why were they so forgiving?

She doesn't know it though, that she was the cause of Chloe very nearly committing suicide, but they wanted to give her a second chance?

Well, with the merge just around the corner, and with eleven players left, there are a lot of people who are probably in an alliance. And if she wanted to get out alive, maybe this was her ticket.

"Fine. Let's do it." She spoke, forcing herself to roll her eyes even if she didn't mean it. It was just a front. If anyone shows their emotions in this place, chances are that someone is going to use it to their advantage.

She was still going to have to be careful.

Chloe let out a breath of relief, smiling slowly as she looked over at Timothy. Quickly, she engulfed him in a hug.

Maybe things were looking up for them after all.

* * *

For Alexei, it had been unexpected. He made it an effort to stay under the radar, and so far, he had succeeded in doing so.

However, because he has done so, chances are that he'll be one of the next to go should his team lose again. As far as he knows, the rest of his team is probably all in an alliance.

He was going to have to make it an extra effort to make sure they do not lose.

Before he had come in, Alexei had been sitting on his bed and almost unconsciously playing with his globe. Spinning it with one hand, and using his other to point at a random point on the globe, and muttered the name of the country to himself.

What took him out of his thoughts was a knock on his door, and before he could say anything, it opened and who he saw wasn't anyone he expected.

Hunter made his way halfway into the room, shutting the door behind him before he stopped and leaned on the wall next to him.

"Hunter?" He asked. The only reason he recalled his name was because he shot someone during the Russian Roulette execution.

Hunter simply nodded. "I'll just cut to the chase. Both of us are on the outs with our teams, I think that we should form an alliance."

Alexei's eyebrow rose, sitting up in confusion as he placed his arm on top of his globe. "We're on different teams."

Hunter shrugged in an uncaring manner. "Does that matter? I'm certain that I'm not the first to ask a member of the opposing team into an alliance."

Alexei opened his mouth to argue, but decided against it at the last second, shutting his mouth.

"As soon as the merge rolls around, we'll need an alliance to work together." Hunter reasoned, sitting further up and placing his foot on the wall.

Alexei contemplated in his mind. Maybe he should take the alliance as a temporary solution? Just so he could further himself?

Though, being in an alliance would be the smart move, would it really be smart to become attached to anyone in this game?

No, forget it. As soon as the merge comes around, he'll have to turn on Hunter. If only to help further himself. If he were to survive, he'll need to sabotage those he has built any form of relationships with.

"Fine." Alexei finally agreed, just managing to hide his guilt from Hunter. Besides, he still didn't trust him, considering that he blew someone's brains out during an execution.

Despite that he agreed, Hunter couldn't completely believe him. Alexei seemed to give off a small vibe that he would betray him sometime in the future.

So if he felt that sometime in the future, should he feel that would happen, he would have to betray him first.

'Well, Alexei, let the games begin.'

* * *

After getting dressed into his regular clothes, Mickey had started downstairs with Erica. By now, she very rarely seemed to leave his side, as though she was his bodyguard or something.

So far today, they hadn't spoken too much to each other. Mickey seemed to have sunk back into his shell, and so he was a bit quiet to say anything to Erica.

As Mickey began to eat, Erica had sat herself down next to him, and seemed completely lost in thought. She recalled the execution last night.

Jade's last words struck a chord in her.

"Don't trust her. You don't know who she is."

She wanted Jade to know that she was a friend. Let her know how much she had made her care for her. She was a good person, and now she was dead.

She was dead because of one interaction she had made with someone. An interaction that someone had used to their advantage.

A relationship that Emily used for blackmail.

* * *

 _Flashback to Pirates of Paspinêw_

 _"Meeting adjourned." Dylan had told them, dropping his blueprints into his drawer, and shutting it tight as Daisy, Jade, Timothy, and Chloe made for the exit. Without much of any thought at all, they opened the door and left._

 _Dylan made his step towards the door, but, to his surprise, he was quickly stopped by Erica, who seemed to refuse to say anything as the door shut in front of them._

 _As soon as it did, Erica spoke. "Are you sure about them? That we can trust them to escape?"_

 _Dylan shrugged in response. "From what I've seen from them, they're the best we can trust."_

 _Erica seemed_ _to struggle on her own words. "But Mickey. He can't go through this. No one can, and especially not him."_

 _"We barely know him! For all we know, he could be messing with us, that could be his strategy for all we know! I don't trust a teenager that may as well think they are still seven."_

 _Erica placed her hands on her hips, almost as if she was thinking._

 _"Besides, I thought you hated people who couldn't take risks." Dylan added with a yawn, crossing his arms and tapping his fingers along his elbow._

 _Erica glared. "And I thought you didn't care about anyone but yourself." With the venom she spat at him, it only made him splutter._

 _"You kissed me!" The architect reminded her with a stupefied look on his face, a look that didn't go well with who he was. It almost made him look like he was a completely different person._

 _Erica shook her head violently. While she could tell him that she regretted it, was that even the truth? She likes Dylan, there was just something about him that appealed to her and she really had no idea what it was._

 _Sure, they were going to die, but if they were, they might as well as make it as best for them as they possibly could before their time on the planet expired._

 _"I really hate you, you know that?" Erica sent him a glare once again, yet this one wasn't as hostile as the first._

 _"Oh yeah, I know." Dylan remarked, walking towards the door, letting his hand fall down to the handle, and sent Erica one last look that most people wouldn't ever see on him. A look of genuine care._

 _Nodding, Erica watched as Dylan opened the door, and stepped out into the hall as to make sure no one else was outside yet. So, with one quick look, he sent Erica an 'all good' sign with his fingers._

* * *

Emily was crafty for sure. She seemed to be one step ahead of them, even if she wasn't, because she tries her best to mold a situation into her favor as best she can.

Hell, how she managed to blackmail Irina was behind her. But it is understandable why she would do anything like this. She needs to get out alive, just like everyone else here.

All Emily is doing is that she is playing a much more dangerous game then the others. A dangerous, but careful game.

Erica took a bite of her food, but stopped at hearing the sound of Clifford's voice echo out of the loudspeakers.

"All contestants, please report to the outside steps, all contestants."

Mickey sighed as he pushed his bowl of breakfast away, and began to stand up. Unaware to him as he had his back turned, Chloe, Daisy, and Timothy walked down the steps of the cabin into the main room, and were closely being followed by Alexei and Hunter.

As soon as the remaining eleven took a step out onto the front patio, Clifford had stood waiting, and leaning on his umbrella.

Just seeing the sadist made some of the contestants feel their hatred boiling within them. God, how they wish they could make him suffer as much as he made them suffer.

"How does it feel to be the final eleven contestants to still be alive on the show?" Clifford asked, folding his hand behind his back.

"It feels like you should die after killing thirteen of us." Jace glared back.

"Well, that's harsh." Clifford smirked in amusement. "Please follow me to the amphitheater for your next challenge."

"There's an amphitheater in this place?" Alexei whispered in disbelief, just loud enough for Clifford to hear.

"Yes, it was being built while your fellow allies were being executed in the traditional gory fashion. Bloody and amazing ways. Just like how someone will tonight."

Without another word, Clifford spun around and had already had begun down the gravel path. As soon as he had begun walking down the path, the eleven contestants forced themselves forward.

Even if they didn't know what was ahead of them, they felt that they did. Very much so, actually. Because at the end of the day, someone else was going to die by the end of the day. And each of them could only hope that it wouldn't be them.

They've entered a stage in the game where anything could happen at any point in time. The friendship that any of the contestants had formed in their time in the competition are all on the verge of complete chaos.

So now, staying alive was so much harder than it ever could be in the real world. Here, anyone could die at any moment. Anyone could be blindsided at any moment. Betrayed.

Now it was time that they had to be careful in everything that they do.

Chloe and Timothy, as per usual, hung around together at the back of the pack and walking quietly to each other. They seemed to be caught up in each other that they failed to notice that Irina was some twenty paces behind them.

"I'm scared." Chloe admitted to him, and upon him looking back at her, he could see her just barely shaking in her shoes.

Timothy had come to notice that, while he was normally such the optimist during his and Chloe's run in this game thus far, he felt some of Chloe's own personality leak into him. Internally he was optimistic about all of these situations, or until Chloe revealed her view on things, which unintentionally seemed to do a number on him.

Not to say that that isn't a bad thing in any way. Most friendships lead to a pinch of someone's personality rub off on you. It's just how it goes.

See, if he and Chloe weren't dating, he would probably attempt to reassure her with his usual optimism on things. But for reasons he didn't know, he let his true self show. The part of Timothy that he wanted to hide away.

Wow, Chloe was really rubbing off on him, huh?

"I'm scared, too." He whispered back. It was the truth, he realized.

"I don't think I'll be able to go on if I lose you." The conspiracy theorist was near tears now, reaching over and wrapping her hands around his arm in a vice-like grip.

"You won't. I promise." Timothy looked down at the shorter girl with a very concerning look. Why must love be so complicated? Why was it that Chloe had these...mood swings so constantly. Should he keep it to himself? Or should he ask her? He doesn't want to do anything to destroy his relationships with her.

"I'll be with you to the very end." The optimist reassured after a bit of a pause. How he wished he could just reach down and take her hand in his own.

Chloe's eyes lit up as she began to smile. She looked up at her boyfriend, finding herself staring off into his eyes.

How she wished she could kiss him right now. She could just remember when she had fallen in love with him. Maybe if they get out alive, they'll be able to live a normal life together. Put Zenith behind them while they lived together sometime in the future.

Oh, how that future would look so bright. It only reminded her of why she fell in love with someone that made her feel so hopeful.

The voice of someone she had barely gotten to know shredded her thoughts.

And that person was Irina.

"Scorn, Glee." She spoke, wrapping her arm around Chloe's shoulder and sent Timothy a smile that he wasn't entirely sure what meant. "Mind if I talk to Scorn?" She asked.

Chloe sent Timothy what seemed like a mix of apologetic and displeasure look.

"Sure." Timothy choked out, he too displeased with Irina's sudden appearance. He continued to walk as Irina forced Chloe to a stop, making sure Timothy got some fourteen paces away, Irina started to walk, all but dragging Chloe with her.

"Here's the deal, Scorn." Irina brought her finger down and placed it on the conspiracy theorist's chest. "I think that you are putting too much trust in Glee."

Chloe frowned. "Why?" She made sure to give no sign away in her voice about her relationship with her boyfriend.

"I don't know too much about you two, but I do know that you shouldn't really be emptying all of your secrets that you don't know too much about."

Chloe opened her mouth to argue with Irina, but only closed it at realizing she couldn't say too much, if anything.

"For all we know, he could be a con-artist! He could be using you to win the game. For all we know, he could just toss you away when he's done with you, have you executed, because if he's playing a game of manipulation, then he probably would be very much winning." Irina took her arm away from Chloe's shoulder, before continuing. "Just something you should really consider."

With all she needed to say being said, Irina left her behind, and smirking as Chloe stopped in her tracks.

She let her words sink in, and let her head drop down to face the gravel path below her. Feeling her eyes tear up, she placed her hands on her eyes as she began to quietly sob.

* * *

The amphitheater wasn't what they expected. It was two small stages beside each other with a four-foot gap in between. Two sets of bleachers had been built up to the side to each stage.

As the two teams began lining up, Clifford began to explain the challenge.

"While I would like to say that today's challenge is simple, that only depends on the skills of all of you. Because the editing team for the show still does not have an intro for the show, I decided to ask you all to make the intro for the show, or at least, the theme song."

This raised a few eyebrows now. What did he just say?

"Behind the stages are the materials to build your stages. As well as a boombox and some disks of song instrumentals to use. However, it will be one of you, or two, that will sing the song.

"You have three hours to build the stages. The first team to do will have an hour long advantage towards an auditioning session. Then, you perform the songs, and I will decide the team that wins. The other gets to send someone to the quite literal and figurative gallows."

Jace rolled his eyes. "You want us to sing for your pleasure?"

Clifford smirked. "You could say that. Now, how about you all actually get to the challenge instead?"

The teams took one last look at the stages, and then began walking towards them, splitting up the large group to compete once more.

"Oh! And one more thing!" Clifford smirked once more, turning his head to look back at the contestants. "Don't get any ideas. As soon as the challenge ends, you'll be searched for any tool that you stole from the challenge."

If the final eleven weren't nervous before, they definitely were now. It felt so much worse now that Clifford was incorporating these usual innocent games into the challenges, and only to kill one of them by the end of the day.

Clifford, you are truly one fucked up man.

The Vipers were the first of the two teams to reach the stage. Clifford seemed to tell the mood of reach of them just from how they were walking, and it brought a very evil smile to his face.

While most of the team had decided on picking up supplies to decorate the stage, Eduardo seemed drawn to the boombox, and seeing the names of songs and bands on the disks.

"Señors and señoritas, perhaps we should find our song before we decorate the stage." He suggested, picking up one of the disks and squinting his eyes to read the name.

"Should we?" Emily asked as she held a large black piece of cloth, and folding it over her arm. "Don't we only need to make the stage to Clifford's liking?"

"Eduardo, how about you and Chloe get to work on finding a song, the rest of us will decorate the stage."

Eduardo stood up and bowed. "As you wish señorita."

With that said, Alexei took a look around, a hammer in hand and a box full of nails. "Where is Chloe anyway?"

"Over here." A soft feminine voice spoke, and causing several heads to turn, though only one of the had eyes that shined in concern.

Chloe, in general, stood at the entrance of the backstage, and her eyes red from crying. However, the only people to notice was Timothy, who looked completely concerned, and Daisy, who just looked confused.

The optimist took a step closer to her, only for her to take a step back.

"I wanna talk to someone I can trust." She mumbled, and suddenly feeling cold, she crossed her arms and sent Timothy a glare, which wasn't one that she could keep. Rather than holding it on him, she felt her eyes soften as she felt them beginning to water again.

Timothy, on the other hand, looked absolutely heartbroken, almost feeling his heart shatter in his chest.

He barely noticed Daisy sigh and walk towards the conspiracy theorist, and take her away. As she did, Eduardo, Emily, and Alexei all seemed confused to an extent.

Despite they're confusion, Emily felt she knew what was going on. Maybe now would be a good time to eavesdrop.

Turning to her three other teammates, Emily placed the cloth back where she found it. "I gotta use the bathroom."

This time Eduardo did seem annoyed. "You're leaving the three of us to work on this challenge alone?"

"Is that a problem, Eduardo?" Emily glanced at him, and seemed prepared to send him the same glare she had earlier that day.

The wannabe charmer opened his mouth to complain, but upon seeing the look Alexei was giving him, he decided against it. "Fine."

With that, Emily turned around and left on the way to the restroom, and watching Chloe and Daisy's figures disappear into the forest.

As soon as he was sure Emily was gone and out of earshot, Eduardo spoke to Alexei and Timothy from over his shoulder.

"Right, so with Daisy and Chloe out of commission, and Emily in the restroom, the rest of us will have to work extra on designing the stage."

Grabbing the cloth that Emily had previously held, Alexei started to work on the stage, and leaving Eduardo to search through the disks, and a near-paralyzed Timothy.

As the three began to get to work, the Phoenixes had their own problems to worry about.

"Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shi-why are all the modern songs complete and utter dog shit!?" Irina complained, throwing the disks over his shoulder after briefly reading the name of each disk.

She could barely keep in her laughter at the looks her teammates were giving her.

Jace bent down to pick up one of the disks and quietly read the name to himself. "I like this song." He frowned, pointing to the title and sending Irina a glare.

Irina tilted her head to look over her shoulder, quickly reading the name of the song that Jace was holding. "You like 'Believer'? By 'Imagine Dragons'? Sly, you have a shit taste in music."

Hunter and Erica exchanged smirks as Jace growled at his secret alliance partner.

"Now this, this is a good song." Irina smirked, ignoring the shadow's piercing glare as she read the name of the song. "'I Can't Decide'. I guarantee you Clifford will enjoy this one." She looked back at her teammates. "We'll work together on the stage in pairs. Gutsy, you're with me."

"Ms. Irina, we don't have enough people on our team to split into pairs."

"You don't have to, Youth, it was just a suggestion." Irina crouched down next to Mickey, and pat his head softly before she stood up.

Erica glanced sadly at Mickey as Irina led her out to the front of the stage, the young boy trapped in a teenage body could only sigh sadly, and slowly followed her.

Hunter grabbed a hammer and a box of nails, talking one last look at Jace, who was still looking through the supplies, and followed the rest of his team out.

Waiting until Hunter's footsteps faded, Jace moved over a sheet of white cloth in the tool box, and smirking at what he had found.

Slowly, he reached inside and found his fingers wrapping around something he was looking for a very long time.

The shadow retracted his hand, and revealing a small and sharply wooden cut statue. Unlike of those before it, this one was a nice wooden carved figure of a skull.

"Hello, immunity." Jace smirked, tilting it just to get every angle. This was his key to surviving the game. Now, all he would need is to find and collect the other two remaining idols, and he should be golden.

For the first time in this game, he hadn't felt worried. Now, this was going to be his game to control. Seems like his confidence may be his downfall. Almost similar to how it was to Dylan.

* * *

Chloe had found herself a log to sit on once she and Daisy had gotten far enough into the forest that they believed they wouldn't be bothered.

"Firstly, what is it, and secondly, why me?" Daisy asked with her arms crossed, deciding against sitting down on the log with her.

Chloe hadn't even glanced back at the girl scout. From her time on this island, from the beginning to now, Daisy felt to have turned into a selfless leader. At the beginning of this game, she was the complete opposite of it, now, she was different.

"I don't know who to trust anymore." Chloe whimpered, though just loud enough for Daisy, and one other to hear.

Neither of them heard the sound of feet moving over the dirt behind the trees. To Emily, this could become a perfect blackmail opportunity. Well, of Daisy doesn't end up killing her first.

"And yet you trust me?" Daisy shook her head in confusion. That doesn't make any sense. Chloe states she doesn't trust anyone, yet at the same time, believes her to be someone she can?

It doesn't make sense to her.

"I don't know. I wanted to talk to someone before I inevitably die." Chloe moped, shifting her feet to make a pattern in the dirt.

Now Daisy was really confused. "Why? You have a boyfriend and no enemies, why would you think that anyone would want you dead specifically?" Daisy asked, circling around the log to face her.

Chloe stuttered. "I-Irina told me that Timothy was just a con-artist. I thought she made sense. Besides, what kind of person would be interested in dating the weird conspiracy theorist, anyway?"

Emily shifted from behind the tree. So, Dylan and Erica aren't the only ones to have a romantic attachment to somebody.

"You trust what Irina was telling you?" Daisy repeated, ignoring the last of what she had said. "You can't be serious. There's a difference between someone like Alejandro and Timothy, and trust me, Timothy is not that type of person. The affection that he shows you is real, trust me."

"How can I?" The conspiracy theorist asked, looking up for the first time during their talk.

Daisy gave Chloe a flat look. "Irina has been acting very differently from when we first met her, why would she suddenly change her personality so drastically."

"I-I don't know." She stuttered again.

"Oh, I think I know."

The teens froze at hearing the new voice. As soon as they heard it, they knew who it was. Emily had made herself known to them.

Clutching the sides of her head, Chloe's eyes widened in complete horror. "Oh no, not again. Please, not again!"

Emily snapped her fingers, and nearly smiling at the look on Daisy's face that seemed to indicate that she had no idea what to do.

"Setting the shock aside, I'll give you two a deal." She dropped her hands to her side, her eyes flickering to both of them.

"Fuck you." Daisy scowled. "I knew someone like you would do this. Take advantage of her feelings for someone."

Now it was Emily's turn to scowl. "I'm just doing what I can to survive. Does that make me a bad person?" She returned.

"It depends on how you get there." Daisy spat, and before Emily could her another word in, she lunged for her, tackling her against a tree, and let her grip tighten around her neck.

Emily spluttered, her eyes widening and her heart racing, though she spoke calmly.

"You shouldn't do this. Clifford will have you killed." She choked out as she already began to feel herself drift in and out of unconsciousness.

Daisy glowered, looking back at Chloe, who had covered her mouth out of shock. Finally, she looked back at the loner, and let go, letting her drop to the dirt and felt her hand fly up to her neck as she coughed.

Daisy took a step back as she let reality set in. What was she doing? What was this game starting to do to her? Christ, it was starting to destroy her.

Emily dropped her back onto the tree, slowly sliding up and sending Daisy a glare so terrifying that she was afraid Emily would kill her right there and then.

Of course, she was wrong.

"Take this alliance with me and I won't consider blurting out about Chloe's little relationship about Timothy."

The loner watched Chloe's glassy eyes shift around, unsure of what to do. God, how did this get so much worse within minutes of each moment. How could she've been so stupid!? Why was she so easily manipulated by those around her?

She had to make it right to Timothy as soon as this challenge was over. But right now, right at this moment, the best thing she could do was keep Timothy safe.

Chloe nodded frantically, accepting the alliance while Daisy seemed a lot more uncertain

"Daisy, you're holding two lives in the palm of your hand. What do you want?" Emily asked, holding her neck from the pain.

While Chloe's decision was easy to make, the same couldn't be said about Daisy. The only reason she took the alliance with Timothy and Chloe was because she simply needed an ally to get the votes to stay alive.

The problem with Emily's alliance possibility was because she had full control over them. What could she possibly do?

"Fuck." Daisy cursed, clutching her hands together with a glare, and locking her eyes with Emily. "Fine."

Emily nodded slowly. "Good. So it's a deal, then." Taking a couple steps back, she continued to watch the duo, both of them looking nearly defeated as she left them behind, and leaving back to the challenge.

Daisy made sure Emily was gone before looking over her shoulder at Chloe, who was rubbing her shoulder, and had a look in her eye that didn't seem to be sure of her actions, and couldn't believe what had happened today.

"W-we should go back to the stage." Chloe finally said glancing up at Daisy with a defeated air to her.

Although they hadn't known it, the editing team then let the cameras fade to black for room of the usual commercial break a usual show has. After all, a usual show should have a commercial break, no matter how fucked up it is.

* * *

"That's time!" Clifford announced, his elbow bent and leaning on the bleachers with his usual smirk coating his lips.

While a few members of the Vipers smiled, namely Alexei and Eduardo, the Phoenixes groaned in displeasure at seeing their completed stage.

"The Vipers have won the challenge by a landslide, and get an hour long audition period for the second half. As for you, Phoenixes," the sadist looked over at the aforementioned team and scanned over their stage, "you better finish the stage, otherwise, you'll be having a problem."

"About that, Avenue." Irina spoke up, crossing her legs and tapping her foot on the wooden floor beneath her. "How do we select our singer if we don't have any auditioning?"

"You just choose someone." Came the answer almost immediately, almost as if he expected the question entirely.

Before anyone else could ask another question, Lane had turned away from them, but not before memorizing the Vipers' stage.

It looked like a good design remake of Paspinêw Island, small hills and paintings of trees in the background, though the main setting appeared to be the graveyard, and a bridge leading off to the lighthouse.

"Now would probably be the time to decide what song we're supposed to be singing." Alexei reminded them, walking backstage to where Eduardo was looking between five disks. Unknown to the rest of them, however, was that he was simply looking for songs that he liked.

Chloe was the one to reach the crate of disks first, and pulled out just the right disk she had been hoping to find. She had been lucky that it was one of the disks Eduardo had previously pulled out.

"How about this." She whispered to Daisy upon the girl scout entering the backstage area after Alexei. "Clifford said he enjoyed it when he...he...nevermind."

Daisy gave Chloe a confused glance. "He didn't…" She trailed off, refusing to even finish that thought.

"No! Absolutely not! He just told me he liked the song." The conspiracy theorist briefly thought back to the night she kissed Timothy for the first time.

Bringing Chloe back to reality, Daisy snatched the disk from her hand and showed the others as soon as they arrived backstage from finishing up the decorations.

"This is the song we're singing." Daisy told them, her face stone cold, but her glare more so directed at Emily rather than anyone else.

"I never agreed to that." Eduardo stood up, holding three disks in his arms and glowered.

"Then who is gonna sing?" Alexei asked, leaning forward to read the title of the song.

Emily sent Daisy a quiet glare, challenging her to make her the singer.

As the Vipers began the auditions and rehearsals, the Phoenixes were having a bit of a more difficult time at building their stage.

Actually, it was mainly Hunter who had a problem. He had found a disk of 'We Are the Champions'. It brought fragments of memory back to his mind. Killing Dylan, killing Kevin. How many more people are gonna be hurt because of him? Because of a song he was brainwashed to.

Speaking of, why hadn't Clifford put on that song any time recently? Did he just want to tarnish his reputation, and then sit back and laugh?

Even if he does get off the island alive, he'll never be the same person again. He would never be viewed as the same man again.

It is pretty obvious, though. Sometime down the line, if he is still alive, Clifford will use him again and for another reason.

What if Clifford-

"Renegade, Gutsy, need you working on this over here." Irina's voice interrupted his thoughts, and upon looking over at what she needed.

As he did, he couldn't notice the worried look Erica had given Mickey as she heard her nickname being spoken.

Ever since her time from the beginning of the game, things have started to get that much worse. Blackmail. Schemes. Schisms. What else will happen before the end of the game? Or at least, before her death?

She could barely remember where not everything was as bad as it was before.

* * *

 _Flashback to One Long Drop_

 _The obstacles course was difficult. The fact that she was almost executed because of saving Mickey idiotic. At least some people actually have some brains and a heart._

 _Not to say Jerome deserved to die. The way he died was disgusting. Clifford tossed him feet first into a wood chipper, what is wrong with that man?_

 _Now, she stood in front of a door, and internally, she was shaking from being oh, so close to death._

 _Knocking on the door softly, Erica took a quick glance around the hallway to see if anyone was out of the hall. And the person to open the door was exactly who she wanted to see._

 _"What do you want?" Dylan asked, yawning in front of the sudden arrival, and placing his elbow on the side of the door._

 _"I wanted to talk." She answered simply, nodding her head towards the back end of his room. And, with hesitation glinting in his eye, he allowed her in._

 _Overall, Dylan's room was almost exactly like how she predicted an architect of such a young age to appear._

 _And in the present day, it hadn't looked any different then it had then. Only real difference between the past and present was that inches of dust had gathered in the room._

 _"What's this about, Erica?" Dylan asked with an uncaring attitude as he shut the door behind him._

 _"You haven't seen any of the executions yet, have you?" Daisy remembered. Over the three challenges that they have done, the Vipers hadn't gone to any executions yet._

 _"Obviously." Dylan scoffed._

 _"But you know that you will."_

 _"Again, obviously."_

 _"We need to get out of here."_

 _Silence._

 _Finally. Something that made Dylan lose his cold exterior._

 _"What are you saying?"_

 _"I thought it was obvious, Dylan!" Erica took a step closer to him and gripped his shoulders._

 _"As in, a rebellion?" The architect whispered in disbelief and shaking his head._

 _Erica nodded slowly, and for the first time, Dylan seemed genuine uncertain. Was this attitude his displayed to his teammates just a mask?_

 _Looking up at Erica and locking eyes with her he spoke again. "We'll need more than two people, and besides, I doubt this would ever work."_

 _Erica stared at him. She watched as Dylan slowly moved his hands up to hers, and slowly began to move them away. Then, her eyes thinned into a determined glare, and moved her head forward so suddenly that no one suspected it._

 _With one swift motion, Erica pressed her lips against Dylan's, moving her hands upwards to grip his shoulders to keep him still._

 _After one more moment, Erica pulled herself away, and, without looking at him, she left him behind, leaving him behind as she accessed the hallway, and left towards her room._

 _But as she did, she felt herself smirking slightly as briefly viewing Dylan's shocked expression, and then slowly bringing his fingers to his lips._

* * *

"I'll do it."

The Phoenixes had looked over at Hunter, who had dressed himself a makeshift costume of Clifford, wearing a black trenchcoat and black suit shirt, and a red tie. With it, he had found nice dress shoes that most likely had previously belonged to Dylan, and a blond wig that resembled Clifford's dirty-blond hair, and in place of the umbrella he constantly used was a cane he found.

His thoughts were that if he succeeded in doing the challenge, that would out him on better terms with his teams.

His reputation was destroyed already, so if they failed this challenge, he would be the one definite to die.

"Well, have fun, Renegade!" Irina wrapped her arm around his shoulder, pointing at his chest. "Just know, if you fuck up, you'll be the one executed."

Hunter nodded, turning away and humming, mainly so to exercise his voice.

"All contestants who aren't singing, make your way to the bleachers. Singers remain backstage." Clifford's voice echoed throughout the island.

Jace gave Hunter a smirk, and then followed the others outside, where the Vipers had begun to make their way towards the bleachers as well.

Clifford stood in a booth that Jordan or Brendan had wheeled in, a microphone on a pedestal in the center of the booth, and blasting out of speakers wired up to the edges of the booth.

"Welcome, contestants, to the twelfth challenge of the season! You've chosen your singers and your songs, but the first team to sing their team's song is the Vipers! While I tell you to have fun, I'm afraid that would be inappropriate."

With all that said, Lane leaned away from the microphone and folded his hands in front of him, and yet taking his hand off the button.

The Vipers sat down on the bleachers on anticipation and worry for the challenge. Chloe and Timothy sat next to each other at the top, yet neither spoke a word to each other, Eduardo was on the middle row, crossing his arms and muttering curses to himself, and Emily sat at the front of the bleachers.

On the Phoenixes side of things, Mickey and Erica sat at the top row, with Irina right below them and leaning backwards, her arms folded over her head. On the bottom row, Jace sat, relaxed.

Behind the Vipers' stage, Daisy paced back and forth in front of Alexei, cursing obscenities.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!" She cursed, gripping her hair as she paced.

"Come on, let's get this over with." Alexei nervously told her, taking a peek around the curtain to see the team waiting, and Clifford waiting with a patient smirk.

Taking a deep breath, Alexei walked out to the front of the stage, and after a very long pause, Daisy followed suit, the duo both picking up microphones hooked up to speakers that Emily had previously wired up.

Bringing the microphones to their mouths, Alexei nodded at Daisy, crouching down to the stage floor and connecting two wires together, and allowing the beginning of the song to play.

Almost just as Alexei pressed the wires together, a beat emitted from the speakers, and one that was all too familiar to Clifford.

The sound of a cheerful beat sounded over both stages, both Alexei and Daisy waited for the lyrics to come in, tapping their feet to the beat to get a better feel for the song they were supposed to be singing.

It came rather quickly, too quickly for Daisy's liking because she had the start of the song.

" _Robert's got a quick hand!_ " She sang. " _He'll look around the room, he won't tell you his plan._ " She paused. " _He's got a cigarette, hanging from out of his mouth he's a cowboy kid. Yeah a six found a shooter gun._ "

Daisy took a quick look at Alexei, who discreetly gave her thumbs-up. Turning back to her team, she resumed.

" _In his dad's closet hidden oh in a box of fun things, I don't even know what! But he's coming for you, yeah he's coming for you._ "

That was the end of her lines for now. She had to keep in mind that they had to make it sound just like the real song, if only just differences in the voices. Anyway, Alexei's lines came next.

" _All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun!_ " He looked over with slight uncertainty at Daisy, who nodded, encouraging him to keep going.

" _All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet! All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun! All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet!_ "

Alexei pulled his microphone away, taking a breath of air. The next lines of the song didn't belong to him, all he had to do was wait for his next series of lines.

" _Daddy works a long day. He be coming home late, he's coming home late, and he's bringing me a surprise. Cause dinner's in the kitchen and it's packed in ice. I've waited for a long time. Yeah the slight of my hand is now a quick pull trigger, I reason with my cigarette. And say your hair's on fire, you must have lost your wits, yeah._ "

The lyrics came from Daisy's mouth, now feeling slightly more confident in her singing, but happy that this was her final set of lyrics she had to sing.

" _All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet! All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun! All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet!_ "

Alexei sang the same lyrics over and over from there on to the end of the song. As he did, neither of them noticed Clifford's increasingly bored expression.

Lane watched the stage before tilting his head to look back at Chloe. A look she didn't reciprocate. 'It seems that Chloe took my likings to her advantage. Interesting, shall we see if it'll pay off?'

As soon as the beat of the song ended, Clifford pressed the button on the microphone, letting his voice heard.

"While I should say 'well done', that just isn't the person that I am, and instead, you better hope the Phoenixes don't pull off anything better than you, otherwise, it's off to be executed with you!"

Taking his hand off the button, he smirked as Daisy and Alexei sent each other nervous glances.

All eyes shifted towards the Phoenixes stage, the curtains slowly beginning to open to show a replica of the execution cabin's interior that the team had built.

Hunter stepped to the front of the stage, and pressed a button that he successfully wired into a self-made button on the cane he found previously.

Behind him were cardboard cutouts of all thirteen dead players.

Bringing the microphone to his lips, Hunter began the song.

" _It's not...easy having yourself a good time! Greasing up those bets and betters, watching out they don't four-letter."_ He walked towards one of the cardboard cutouts that resembled Krystal. _"Fuck and kiss you both at the same time._ " Picking up a car battery charger and attaching it to her head, and flicking the switch to life, allowing the cardboard cutout to shake from the electrical voltage.

" _Smells like something I've forgotten, curled up died, and now it's rotten!_ " He kicked over Krystal's cutout, and loosening the charger from its head.

" _I'm not a gangster tonight! Don't wanna be a bad guy! I'm just a loner baby, and now you've gotten in my way!_ " Taking his cane, he whacked the Travis cardboard cutout over the head, and completely knocking it off.

" _I can't decide whether you should live or die! Oh, you'll probably go to heaven, please don't hang your head and cry!_ " Flicking another switch, the cutout of Jerome slowly sank through a large shredder that they had set up, the wooden board shredding through it, and pieces of wood flying in every direction.

" _No wonder why my heart feels dead inside, it's cold and hard and petrified._ " He sang, and each time pounding his chest at each word. " _Lock the door and close the blinds, we're going for a ride!_ "

The Ted cardboard cutout flew in on a hitch. Stopping it, Hunter pushed it back with a strong force, and allowing the wooden head to impale on a nail that they had hammered in.

" _It's a bitch convincing people to like you. If I stop now call me a quitter, if lies were cats you'd be a litter. Pleasing everyone isn't like you. Dancing jigs until I'm crippled, slug ten drinks I won't get pickled!_ "

Pressing a button, the head of Jack's cardboard cutout was torn off in a firecracker explosion.

" _I've got to hand it to you, you've played by all the same rules. It takes the truth to fool me, and now you've made me angry!_ "

The cutout of Jewel's eye fell out, an in its place was that of a worm attempting to free itself from the head.

" _I can't decide whether you should live or die. Oh, you'll probably go to heaven, please don't hang your head and cry._ " His hand wrapped around a rope hanging from the ceiling, and quickly tugged it down, and hanging Elsie's cutout around by the neck.

" _No wonder why my heart feels dead inside, it's cold and hard and petrified. Lock your doors and close the blinds, we're going for a ride._ " Again, he pound his hand against his chest at each word.

As he turned towards the audience, behind him was a cardboard cutout of Dylan with a hole drilled through the center of his head.

" _Oh, I could throw you in the lake. Or could feed you poisoned birthday cake, I won't deny I'm gonna miss you when you're gone._ "

Two cutouts of Kevin and Marisa with water jugs over Marisa's head, while Kevin's had cuts on his arms, filled with ketchup that had been found in the pile.

" _Oh, I could bury you alive, but you might crawl out with a knife and kill me when I'm sleeping, that's why…_ "

Grabbing a blowtorch, he blew it over Lizzy's cutout, and quickly stepped away before it caught him as well.

" _I can't decide whether you should live or die. Oh, you'll probably go to heaven, please don't hang your head and cry._ "

He reached behind the curtain and grabbed a cutout of Jade, cut in half, and all but showing them the one half of the cutout.

" _No wonder why my heart feels dead inside! It's cold and hard and petrified._ " Just like the first two times, he hit his chest with his fist at each word. " _Lock the doors and close the blinds, we're going for a ride!_ "

At reaching the final line of the song, Hunter bowed his head, and nearly sweating from nervousness. And he met by silence.

Until the sound of Clifford's hands clapping as a reward of sorts.

"I think it goes without saying that the Phoenixes have won the challenge." Lane stood up and folding his hands behind his back, turning from both teams.

"Vipers, you'll be sending someone to execute, seems you've hit a brick wall this challenge. Decide your votes, and I'll see you again tonight."

* * *

That night, the tension was as high it had ever been since the start of the game.

The last person to enter the execution cabin was Brendan, who locked the door behind him as he entered, and watching as each of the six contestants sat down.

Locking the door, Brendan picked up the tray of marshmallows, hiding all of them from the team and whispering something in Lane's ear.

Clifford gave Brendan a sly grin, taking the platter away from him.

"This team is becoming more and more dysfunctional!" The sadist exclaimed, eyeing each of the six.

Each of the contestants had a different facial expression. Daisy looked furious, Emily looked annoyed, Alexei just shook his head, Chloe and Timothy both seemed heartbroken, and Eduardo looked confident.

"All of you have a reason to be executed, but I'd say the only person that could possibly be safe is Alexei."

Reaching down, Lane tossed Alexei the marshmallow, who sighed in relief.

The sadistic host looked back to the other five. "Emily."

The loner in question shrugged as Clifford tossed her her marshmallow.

"Chloe."

The next marshmallow bounced off Chloe's forehead as she slouched over.

"And...Daisy."

Daisy raised her hand and clutched her marshmallow in a fist, and threw Clifford a fierce glare.

"That leaves Timothy and Eduardo. While I could go into detail about who each of you are in the bottom two, I really don't feel like it."

Timothy frowned while Eduardo rolled his eyes.

"Please, Clifford, just give me my marshmallow. We both know it's mine."

Clifford's eyes half closed, yet he kept smiling. "Fine, you caught me. Eduardo, you're safe."

Lane tossed the marshmallow from his fingers, and landed in Eduardo's hand, who quickly stuffed it into his mouth.

Timothy gave Chloe one final look as he stood up. Opening his eyes to say something, he stopped at seeing Chloe tear up again.

He turned away and walked over to Clifford and Brendan.

Taking one last look at his team, though Chloe looked beyond saddened, and Daisy who looked down right confused.

Brendan interlocked his arm with the optimist's, taking him over to an 'X' that was made using duct tape.

Lane dropped his platter to the floor and revealed to the team a remote control. Smirking, he spun around and handed Timothy the remote, who himself looked near tears.

"Press that when you're ready to be executed." He told him, pointing up to the ceiling at a block of concrete hanging via chains above his head.

Glancing upwards, Timothy nodded, taking the remote in his hands as he wiped his eyes with his sleeve.

Moving his thumb over the button, the optimist stopped at seeing Chloe leap up from her seat and sprint towards him.

Wrapping her arms around him, she leaned up on her toes and planted a deep and sensual kiss on his lips.

Gasps erupted in the room from everyone that wasn't Daisy or Emily.

Emily glared, curling her hand into a fist, crushing her marshmallow between her fingers.

Finally, Chloe pulled away to reveal tears in her eyes, she dropped her head in his shoulder, or at least, the best she could.

She was stopped when Brendan yanked her backwards, pinning her arms behind her back as she sobbed.

Timothy smiled apologetically at her. "I love you." He mouthed, and she quickly reciprocated the action.

Timothy locked eyes with her, and ran his thumb over the button, and quickly pushed down.

Blood exploded all over the room, covering almost everyone there in both blood and guts of the person executed.

Thing was, when Chloe opened her eyes again, Timothy stood perfectly fine, yet he was covered in blood, his eyes closed, wincing for the worse, yet that never came.

On the main couch, Alexei almost screamed in horror at seeing Eduardo's stomach blown open from an explosion.

Taking one last look at Clifford, the wannabe charmer collapsed to the floor, and falling into a puddle of his own blood.

Clifford, still smirking, wiped the blood from his face. "Actually safe tonight is Timothy!" He glanced over at the optimist, still standing under the 'X', and wiping the blood from his own face. "It was a one to two to three vote. The marshmallow I gave to Eduardo was filled with a tiny bomb, but it definitely does some good damage."

The sadist approached the corpse, and pushed him over with his foot, seeing the giant hole in his midriff.

"So, that," he pointed to the 'X' under Timothy, "was a fair execution. Enjoy another day of being alive. God knows you'll two are gonna need it."

Chloe clutched Timothy as Clifford gestured towards the two of them, Alexei completely shocked by the night's execution.

As the reality continued to set in, Clifford unlocked the door and stepped outside, and took a long breath.

"Well, today was another fun-filled day on Total Drama Zenith. Secrets have become known, and the drama has turned up a bit. Now, with ten contestants left, we're reaching the final stages of the show. Who's the next to die, we'll find out soon on the next episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

 **AN: So...I wasn't sure how this chapter turned out, but I do hope it was rather enjoyable. Come on people, let's get to 100 reviews! We can do it! By the way, before any of you all start asking why I hadn't put Corrow in the chapter, that's because this chapter would've ended up a lot longer then it already is. So, because of that, I'll upload a special Corrow chapter before I get episode 13 out. Also, I had a question, so, just put it at the bottom of your review or something:**

 **Now that we've hit the final ten, what are your guys' elimination/execution prediction order for the rest of the game?**


	13. Mechanisms Beyond Death

**AN: Ok, seriously, I am not sure if I like how this chapter turned out, but considering how long it is and how long I spent on it, it feels a bit too late to go back now. I hope it's enjoyable, but, I myself am not really sure. And...about that Corrow chapter...yeah, after writing it and discovering that it was only a thousand words, I decided that I should just toss it into the next chapter.**

 **ShadowJcreed:** Thanks! Yes, let us see how far Chef shall fare, should he make an appearance at some point.

 **AZW330:** Thank you! I hope you like the interactions this chapter, but after what happened last time, I kinda feel like I set the bar a bit too high.

Oh yes, Emily will be having a much more difficult time now, won't she? Wonder she'll last. And while Mickey would probably want to join them, it more or less comes down to Erica, who's made it her goal to protect him. So, question is, will she trust them?

And regarding the immunity idols, while Jace does have one, how will they know that he has it? It really is something that should be kept a secret, especially around the schemers. And hiding in plain sight? Who knows...

That scene with Irina and Chloe is going to have a big impact, and while it started in the last chapter, it'll probably be one of those things that keep returning. What if Irina was right about Timothy? All Chloe has is his word, really. I'm glad you enjoyed it! As for Chloe's nickname? Well, the answer to that'll be coming up.

I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter, and I hope you enjoy this one! I hope.

 **ThorBringsTheThunder:** I will never stop! Also, good predictions, let us see how on point you are, if at all...

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare:** Thanks! Nice guesses! I don't really know what to say other than that!

 **WarriorAuthor1127:** Brendan's kinda in a gray area between sadistic and not entirely sadistic...ha, not really much of a balance at all, now that I think about it!

I'm really glad you like the suspense, too bad I write it better when I'm depressed, though. I'm really glad you liked the plots I designed for almost all of the remaining characters, so that's a plus! Yeah, those idols are really gonna be useful for those who have them. But here's the question, are there still two idols out there, or does Jace have the last one? Hmm...

Every story has its flaws, and I'm sure this one has more than just those. As for Emily, that isn't entirely true, though, because she doesn't have any leverage over Chloe and Timothy anymore. As for Jace...meh, yeah, I see that.

Eduardo was a comic relief character that I felt I made work in a story that's supposed to be depressing, so...yay! And really, you thought Mickey would be the one to die? I'm surprised. But I can see it, considering that I haven't given him too much development as of yet. Good predictions, how many of them are correct, I wonder...

And thanks! I wanted to write a 100,000-word story, and it seems that I did it! Yay!

 **Aleister Bloodrive VII:** Thank you, and I'm glad you enjoy how Irina has been portrayed!

* * *

Mechanisms Beyond Death

It was time again. The day that nine teenage competitors will continue further, and one is forced to be left behind.

On Paspinêw Island, the lives of fourteen teenagers had ended in brutal ways that someone shouldn't ever think of. In ways that nobody should suffer through.

In the middle of their sleep last night, the rain had started to pick up, and washed away all of that blood that stained the dirt.

There have only been a few challenges where the rain hadn't been pouring down. Only two days had gone by where it hadn't.

Each day someone died, the executions became more and more brutal. Just like last night. Last night, Eduardo died with his stomach blown open in an explosion.

The Vipers recalled it very clearly. Chloe kissed Timothy, and yet it hadn't been him that was executed. Now, their relationship was up in the air for no reason because, instead, Eduardo was the one who died.

The blood had flown I'm every direction of the room, plastering against each and every wall in the crimson color of someone's life.

They could only watch as Eduardo's life drained from his face, collapsing to the ground, and holding his stomach as if he could do something. As if he could change the outcome.

None of that mattered, though. He couldn't do anything once the votes had been cast, and yet he had no idea what was about to happen to him.

The only person who remembered back on it with joy was Clifford Lane, standing on the edge of the dock, and holding an umbrella high above his head.

The droplets of water only dribbled down the sides of his umbrella, yet Lane paid them no mind. To him, the only thing that mattered was having fun as he forced his little hostages to play his game.

"Last time on Total Drama Zenith, the teams of five and six were forced into decorating stages to sing a song to the viewers of our beloved show. Or rather, it was for other reasons.

"Using Chloe's heart against her, Irina considered if she was being played and dragged along throughout the competition for his gain. Her words had lasting effects, and the couple are much more broken then they had been the day before.

"On the bright side for someone whose name has been replaced by 'Sly', the first immunity idol of the season was found, and in the hands of someone that no one can trust.

"Several alliances were formed, though Emily was the one who attempted to use it all for her benefit. Fortunately for her, it worked...temporarily, using blackmail as her prime resource.

"In the end, the Phoenixes won the challenge by singing my new favorite song, and sent the Vipers to execute one of their now former players. Believing Timothy to be the one executed, Chloe revealed her relationship to both Eduardo and Alexei. In a turn of events, Timothy survived the execution, and, in his place, was Eduardo, with a stomach blown open in our most creative execution yet.

"As for who is the next to go, we all have a few ideas. Yet, none of us know who the next one will be. But, we'll all find out tonight, within the execution cabin, and involving a marshmallow on a platter. Find out on Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

Oh boy, things have started to pick up, and he only had a minor impact on those choices made last night. The execution that night had been Brendan's idea, and if he had it his way, Eduardo would've had his head chopped off with a blunt axe.

Every other step he took along the hallway of his headquarters came the tap of an umbrella, almost in a pitter-patter motion similar to that of the rain.

It wasn't that he didn't trust St. Clarence, more so that he was simply confused.

Ever since Damien Deveraux's death about four days ago, something about St. Clarence seemed off. Somehow, he appeared slightly more caring than he used to be. Something wasn't right, and goddamnit, if the guy turns out to be Interpol, the consequences will be disastrous.

He had already made sure to have his pistol on him should that turn out to be the case. After all, he spotted Dandy and played the ignorant card on Harvey.

Lane leaned through the door into the same observation room that had been used to brainwash Hunter.

Luckily for him, St. Clarence stood by a notebook and writing some notes in, though, from Lane's standpoint, he couldn't read them, and nor did he really care.

"What'cha working on?" The sadist asked from right behind, placing his hands on the table in front of him and leaned forward.

St. Clarence spun around in the swivel chair he was in and gave Clifford a blank type of look, but with a smile tugging at his lips.

"I'd hardly think Hunter's job is over as of yet." He spoke in an almost boring voice, and sent Lane a feeling within him that made him unsure.

Dandy had been easy enough to catch for who he was, St. Clarence, on the other hand, was a bit different. Unlike what Dandy was attempting to pretend to be a complete psychopath, St. Clarence, for the most part, is an ex-CIA interrogator. So why did he seem to be so concerned regarding Deveraux's death?

Lane dipped his hand into his coat pocket, his fingers wrapping around his pistol's handle. "Regarding what you told me the other day, why did you care about Damien's passing?" He asked, and made no care for being subtle.

St. Clarence cocked his head to the side, yet the features on his face hadn't changed at all. "I don't recall this." He spoke in an oddly calm tone. "I don't seem to recollect coming to you with Deveraux's death in mind."

For the first time in a long time, Lane appeared to be confused. Removing his fingers from his Ruger SR1911 for a brief moment, and then curling against in a much tighter grip.

"I think you're lying, Jerome." Lane smirked, drumming his free hand against the table and creating a beat, and sounding similar to that of horse galloping.

"I suppose you could think that. Of course, you'd be wrong." St. Clarence spoke once more in a very condensating and in addition to his calm timbre.

Still, Lane hadn't stopped smirking. Yet, now, it was for a different reason entirely. Seems that St. Clarence was clean after all. Still, they still have a problem at hand. That problem being one of the most cliché in the book.

"So, you've mentioned before about your brother?" Lane asked in an almost giddy voice, hopping up on the desk, and crossing his legs.

* * *

Perhaps this'll be much easier now.

Those were the seven words circling around Jace's head ever since he found the idol during the challenge the day prior.

He was in the home stretch now, and the merge was right around the corner. Considering that there was only ten of them left, it certainly does feel as if Lane has been trying to keep them in teams for as long as possible.

Either way, the merge could be helpful, or it could be dangerous.

Considering how many people could be in alliances, the idol may save him during one of these executions. But frankly, he should solidify his spot in the finale by locating the other two idols.

Even despite the idols, he still had his alliance with Irina. Obviously, he would have to drop her at some point, and preferably, when there is only four or so of them left. She's too strategic for her own good.

It has crossed his mind, however, that if someone had found one of the idols besides him, that will lead to some complications sometime in the future.

All that matters, however, is who.

And from what he's heard from some of the others that still remained in the competition, Emily is supposed to be quite the crafty character. He'd have to analyze her to determine how much of a threat she could possibly be.

If anyone is going to escape this island alive, it will be him. He's already been playing the game hard, and shifting his cards in the correct pattern.

If he loses...he loses everything.

For as long as he can from here on, he'll be forced to stay under the radar. While that strategy may not prove well for long, it's the best he's got.

After all, Alexei seemed to be pulling off that same strategy. As soon as the merge hits, he would be having a bit of much more trouble. He would have to be taken out at some point or another.

It was the point in the game where the threats needed to be removed. Problem is that some of the bigger threats are on the opposing team.

Jace's fingers drifted over the beautiful sculpted skull, his eyes glancing over the top to bottom of the wooden piece. This thing...this wooden block of wood was his life. It held his future within it. It would help him survive.

Well, that is partly why he has Irina as an alliance partner. Otherwise, there was a chance that he could've died a long time ago.

The shadow sat up in his bed and spun the idol around in his hand. His fingers traced the indents within, folding it over his hand to examine every spot of the figure.

Maybe he could whittle a copy?

No, that wouldn't work. Lane is too smart for that, and if a breakout was being planned under his nose, only to discover he had known from the start, then whittling an immunity idol was one of the others that he could've expected from the teens he was holding hostage.

Whatever. As long as he had at least one of the idols with him, he was the most powerful person in the competition. Although he had slight worries, he felt much more relaxed rather than any other emotion in the fiber of his being.

The only reason he had sprung up from his bed was because of a knock at the door. Cocking his head towards the door, he breathed out an annoyed sigh.

Stepping off his bed, he stretched his arms and began towards the door. Realizing he still had the idol in his hand, he briskly stuffed it away in his back pocket, and fitting just into place.

Running his hand through his hair, he reached for the doorknob with his free hand and turned it, letting the door fly open on its hinges.

"Hello, Sly." Came the now all-too-familiar voice of Irina, and an eerie grin plastered across her lips. "Mind if we have a chat?"

Jace gave her a slightly irritated gaze. "Yeah, I do mind." He uttered in a matter-of-fact tone.

Irina's eye twitched rather moderately, something that Jace noticed and internally smirked. Seems that he found her weakness.

"Fantastic!" She decided to ignore him instead and punctually allowed herself inside, lifting her foot upwards to clip the door, and shut it behind her.

"Perhaps we should strategize on who to execute should we lose?" She asked, stopping at his drawers and grabbing the photo of Jace and his family atop. "Gotta wonder how Avenue got our family photos." She commented, placing it back down.

Jace rolled his eyes and rose his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Who did you have in mind?"

Irina curled her hands into fists and clapped her knuckles together in an almost giddy fashion. To her, the executions were the single most exciting parts of the game. She couldn't care less if she died, just as long as she had fun while competing. Only one of them was going to get out alive as it is.

While Nebiros 'told Irina' that he would get her out alive, he has no plan on actually escaping alive. Except for the fact that if he made it into the finale, then he may as well win.

"Either Renegade or Gutsy, both are threats to our game." She replied, sitting down on the bed and crossing her legs.

"Gutsy?" Jace repeated in thought. "You mean Erica?"

Irina gave a sluggish nod. "Who else?"

"And Hunter?"

"Do you really want such a wild card still in the game and free to do whatever they please? Don't you remember when he blew someone's brains out?"

'Speaking of wild cards…' Jace thought to himself. The more he looks at this situation, the more he considers the need to hop from alliances to alliances. He could already feel the tension growing between him and Irina. Seeing the way things were going, he would have to drop her within the next challenge or two. He can't risk his own death by keeping her along.

Irina picked at the dirt under her fingernails, and gave Jace one quick glance. The problem with Jace trying to agree with her was that he made himself attempt to sound too convincing, rather than alter his face appearances.

Being a suppressed secondary personality can tell you a lot when it comes down to facial appearances. Manipulating Irina to trust him was too easy. All it took was a little push to allow him to take control.

'Well, well, Sly. Let's see who can betray the other the fastest.'

* * *

Fucking Christ. Why had he stolen that damn watch? It was because of that that his brain was in constant pain, and almost always had a splitting headache.

The only thing that really soothed him was tossing a flat surfaced rock into the same lake Timothy had taken to show Chloe a few days prior.

He enjoyed the view of the rocks bouncing off the lake's surface, and two, three times.

Hunter sighed, raising his one free hand to grab onto his neck and rub it. He groaned at the pain in his head, tossing the rock in his other hand yet again.

The wild card had almost forgotten Alexei was sitting a few feet away from him, and watching every room he tossed, skipping along the water.

Hunter had won the challenge for his team yesterday and nobody had ever thanked him for the victory. Overall, it made him feel as if he was a monster. Was it still because he killed someone?

Fuck that.

He's been helping his team as much as he could since that execution. It wasn't his fault he was being brainwashed! He's practically become a sleeper agent working for Lane. Well, in reality, that isn't exactly how it works, but anyone who watches an espionage movie would understand it.

Little did Hunter himself know it, he was slowly drifting further and further away from sanity.

The only person on the island that actually seemed to feel sorry for him was Alexei.

The hiker could only watch as Hunter tossed his fourth rock skipping along the lake. Poor guy. This game was starting to destroy him. Just like it had to Lizzy before him.

Only thing is that Hunter has been much more destroyed than anyone else on the island. Truthfully, he doesn't deserve anyone's sympathy. But, that is the problem with Alexei. He always sees the good in others.

"I hate it that we have to vote someone off." Alexei muttered sourly, attempting to make conversation with his alliance partner. He still had no idea in mind how this alliance between the two of them could work.

Hunter sent him a sideways glance. "It's better them than us. We've survived this far because we stayed in the background as much as we could."

Alexei bit his lip. What he said was both wrong and incorrect. Absolutely no one here deserved to die, everyone here is doing the best they can to survive. Only one person will ever be able to get out alive, which only means that much more incentive to actually do something.

That's one thing anyone would have to hand to Clifford. He knows how to put on a good show. Is that demented? God, this is the type of game that will turn even the sanest people into someone certifiably insane.

Well, maybe that's what Hunter meant. Nobody deserved to die, but if he wants to survive, he'll have to do what he can to survive. Everyone has to.

"I don't know...it feels a bit more like luck, if anything." Alexei dropped his own opinion on the situation, and almost unaware of the glare that Hunter shot him.

What was he saying? That he was a psycho? That he should've been killed a long time earlier?

Rather than think through much about what he had been referring to, Hunter instead shot upwards and leaped towards him, his hands wrapping around his throat as he pushed him towards the Earth soil.

Alexei spluttered in surprise as he felt Hunter's grip harden around his neck, his eyes widening in horror as he felt his own hands reach up for Hunter's in order to stop him. Or maybe it was just in human's nature to stop anything horrific to happen to them.

Almost just like this entire situation. To those who have died, hopefully Lane will end up dead to avenge all of those deceased.

"Hunter! Pl-please!" Alexei managed to choke out, reaching out with his free hand to try and grab onto Hunter's face.

"You have no idea what I've been through." Hunter sneered, watching with wrath glinting in his eyes.

Thoughts raced throughout Hunter's mind as he leaned away from Alexei's hands, letting his hands grip tighter and tighter as Alexei slowly began fading in and out of unconsciousness.

Fuck the alliance! He could probably make it further without him. Hell, he knows Alexei would betray him at some point as it is, and he promised himself that he would betray him first.

Every thought that went through Hunter's mind disappeared when his headache escalated with what felt as if a grenade exploded beside him, pain shooting up through his body. His hands loosened around Alexei's throat as his body fell limp beside him.

Alexei felt his body return to his normal senses as Hunter fell completely out cold next to him. His eyes registered his surroundings once more, and making out the form of Brendan looming over him with a full appearance on his face, and a tree branch in hand that he quickly dropped to his side.

"You?" Alexei recognized after a long period of silence between the two.

"As much as Clifford enjoys the drama, we can't let you kill each other." Brendan replied, using his foot to move Hunter's body over from his position on his stomach.

Without another word, Brendan turned away and muttered something under his breath. Alexei struggled to stand up for too long, and was only left to watch as Brendan disappeared into the forest, leaving the duo behind.

As soon as he was gone, Alexei tilted his head over to look at Hunter's unconscious body. Maybe they were right, within seconds...everything could change.

* * *

Raindrops softly collided with small puddles in the dirt outside, creating small waves to shift throughout the small pool in the soil.

It was interrupted when a foot dressed in tennis shoes stomped down on it, and lifting back upwards to continue on a specifically designated path.

The rain seemed to settle down, but it was punctuated by a body being dragged along with the other, squirming in the grip as they were forced along.

Now, two people stood at their destination and waiting for Daisy to arrive. Those two in question were Chloe and Timothy, though one of them holding her shoulder awkwardly, and standing at the backside of the main cabin.

She could feel her heart still beating rapidly from Eduardo's execution last night. She was so afraid Timothy was going to die. Even despite that, she wasn't entirely sure of her feelings for him. Irina may have brought up some points, but then again, so did Daisy. The question was, who does she actually believe?

Chloe wasn't sure if they were still in a relationship anymore. How bad did she fuck up her chances with such an amazing person? After how she interacted with him, surely he wouldn't want to be with her anymore, right?

Timothy thought similarly, yet the opposite. He believed they were still in a relationship, isn't that what the kiss meant? Though, why did she seem so mad at him yesterday? Did he do something to make her mad? Oh God, hopefully not.

"I'm sorry!" Chloe apologized for the upteenth time during her period on the show. She hated herself for how she treated someone she cared about...someone that only cared about her.

Fuck whatever Irina says. What does she know? She's never felt this way about anyone before. She loved him and he loved her. Wasn't that all that mattered?

"I thought you were mad at me." Timothy grinned awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck as he looked back at her with a smile. Chloe flushed.

"I was blind." She turned away, touching her cheeks to hide her blush. "Irina told me lies that I believed." Her eyes narrowed and she spat Irina's name with venom.

Timothy placed his hand on her shoulder in concern. "What did she say?"

Chloe frowned and crossed her arms uncomfortably. "I...I don't really wanna talk about it right now. Could we later?" She smiled hopefully at him, as if expecting him to decline her.

Fortunately, her negative thoughts were shown incorrect, and proving so when Timothy shrugged, grinned, and let his hand rise to her shoulder.

"Whenever you're ready." He smiled, and it only grew wider when Chloe leaned into his touch, enjoying the feeling of his thumb caressing her cheek.

Chloe muttered a thank you as she touched his hand quite gingerly. "Does this mean we're back on?"

"Were we ever off?" Came the reply, glancing to her soft hand on his own.

A bright smile crossed her features and the two began to lean in towards each other, their lips inching towards each other, further and further, just until…

Their affection was interrupted by Daisy emerging through the bushes, and pulling something along in her hands.

Glaring at no one in particular, Daisy threw her arm around, forcing a girl, dressed in almost all black, forward.

Emily's body hit the ground and slid forward a mere inch or two. She felt the dirt beneath her hands as she forced herself to face the girl she attempted to blackmail.

The loner shot the duo a glare as Daisy circled her, all the while shooting a sharp scowl until she stopped beside Timothy.

"Is there something I can do for you?" Emily spat, namely at Daisy. Dropping her head down, she placed her hands on the dirt floor and pushed herself up to her feet.

"You are just a disgusting human being." Daisy hissed with rage.

Emily felt she had a general idea for what she was referring to. "Like I said, I'm just doing what I can to survive. Does that make me such a bad person?" She repeated what she had said the day prior.

Daisy shook her head and replied with the same reply she had yesterday. "It depends on how you get there." Emily tried to blackmail them, and she failed. How they could have her executed so easily now.

Chloe looked between the two girls. "Do we really need this hostility?" She asked with minor irritation.

Daisy shot Chloe a perplexed scan. "The bitch tried to blackmail you! How can you not abhor her!?"

"Blackmail!?" Timothy's eyebrows shot up in surprise, as if this was the first time he had ever heard of this. He gave Chloe a very concerning look, and she only glanced up at him apologetically, almost as if she was sorry for not bringing it up with him.

"Well…" Chloe trailed off, thinking of her next words very carefully. "I can't say I hate her, unlike someone else." Her face contorted into a scowl, recalling what Irina had done to her. "But I can't say I can forgive her." Her eyes slid over to Emily, holding a covered bruise on her shoulder.

Closing her eyes, she muttered to herself, "Keep them on their toes." Reopening them, she gave a terrifying glare to Daisy, a wave of a chilling nervousness go down her spine.

Daisy turned her gaze back to Chloe. "What the fuck?" She couldn't get much further than that.

"Aren't we all trying to live?" Timothy tapped his fingers together. "We're all going to do as much as we can to get out alive. Besides, maybe that was a one time thing! You gotta stay positive, Daisy."

"And you gotta be smart." Daisy snapped back. "What matters is that she was planning to use your relationship for her gain! Can't you see what that would do? If it got out, then you two would be tagged as the biggest threats!"

Chloe bit her lip as Timothy pinched his lips together. Daisy was right. Why did it feel like she was always right?

Daisy turned her head back to Emily, who, for the first time, eyes shined with nervousness. Her fate was sealed, wasn't it?

"Considering what she did, we could just throw the next challenge. We have the majority vote." Daisy offered with a glare at the loner.

"I don't know." Chloe looked between Daisy and Timothy, who also seemed unsure. "How does that make us better than her? Better than Irina? We can't do this!"

Timothy shifted his gaze from Emily and Daisy, to Chloe. He had to make a decision that could lead to Emily's death...or let her live.

No, he has to stay optimistic. Emily is not as bad as Daisy makes her out to be. She is not a bad person…

"We can't kill her." Timothy looked back to Daisy. "Are you listening to yourself? She isn't a bad person."

Daisy's jaw almost dropped, and took another long look at Emily, who could feel herself starting to smirk in relief and their mistake.

'They should've killed me.' She told herself in her mind.

"You are so fucking lucky." Daisy sneered, snapping her head away and stalking off, and refusing to look back at her alliance.

"But if what Daisy says is true," Chloe started, noticing out of the corner of her eye that Timothy had spun his head to give her a concerned look, "then you are a part of this alliance, and on an even playing field with the rest of us."

"So be it." Emily crossed her arms in pure annoyance.

Timothy frowned as Chloe placed her hands on her head. Why does it seem that she was trying to become a bit more strategic now?

Maybe he could help her? Remind her for who she was? Her camera was broken, perhaps he could attempt to fix it for her! Yes, that feels like a good idea!

He won't let this game destroy her like it did to the others before.

As soon as the couple had started to leave the semi-hurt girl behind, she let her eyes close in remembrance.

The death of her brother almost seemed to be the breaking point of her parents. As soon as they heard of his untimely death, neither of them ever really seemed to be the same again.

Not even her younger sister, Audrey. Both of them had looked up to him, so his death was a shock, and neither of them thought about how their lives would turn out without him.

Well, on paper it felt as if none of them would ever return to the way they were. Audrey had, becoming the same bubbly child she once was. Unlike her, however.

Ever since his death, she changed quite significantly. She hardly remembers anything prior to her brother's death, as if it all completely shut out from her memory. Most of the events that created her into the girl she was today was blurred and in pieces.

Goddamn her sister. She was the reason that she was stuck on this damn island. She plans to get out, and the moment she does, she will kill her! Figuratively, of course.

Chloe and Timothy want her to work with them on equal terms, unfortunately, they will just have to be disappointed. Letting her live will be a fatal mistake, because if she will have the opportunity to kill any of them, she will take it

All she wants is to survive. Even if that means that others will have to die, that doesn't mean that she will have to. She has to do anything she can to live, Daisy may think that makes her a bad person, but does it really? It's simple human nature to do what they can to survive.

Sorry, Chloe, Timothy. But some people have to look out for themselves. Besides, the merge is just around the corner, so all she has to do is gain the majority vote and have all three of her new alliance members to be executed.

If she used Irina's alliance with Jace, that's already three votes against one of them, and together with Erica's vote, she could vote out all three of them with a simple finger snap.

She had Eduardo voted out for a reason, and that was because she had no more use for his help. But now that she was practically being blackmailed herself, and by her own tricks, maybe voting him out wasn't the greatest idea...yet, that is.

If any of those three were going to be voted out first, then let it be Daisy. The bitch thinks that she can convince the others to throw a challenge to kill her? They must be insane to team up with a threat as big as her.

Maybe it was time to play much more strategically than before.

* * *

Yesterday was bad.

Erica drummed her fingers along the table, deep in thought. She wanted to talk to Mickey, but he didn't seem to want to. Roxie's death must've snuck back into his mind and weighed on his subconscious. As if he was the one responsible for her death.

Hypothetically, that is. Roxie's death hurt him, but there was no sign that proved that he was the one who thought he was responsible.

Beside her, Mickey happily ate his food. Their team hadn't gone to the execution cabin last night and it had put his mind back into a place he thought well of.

Still, something weighed in his mind. He felt guilty for not talking to Erica. He was a bit too oblivious to know it, however, Erica was the one protecting him. She was the one making sure Emily hadn't gone for him yet.

"I'm sorry." Mickey apologized, dropping his fork back on his plate and dropping his head down towards his feet, watching as he kicked them back and forth. "I hope I didn't make you mad yesterday."

"You didn't. You're fine." Erica attempted her sweetest smile, which obviously wasn't much. Attempting to calm someone wasn't her strong suit. And therewithal, she still had to think of a way to get out of Emily's grip.

"Are you sure?" Mickey asked in concern. "I mean, I really hope you aren't mad or anything, so, are we cool?"

Erica calmly gave another response similar to that of her first one. "Mickey, we're fine. You didn't do anything that could hurt me." Not the best type of comfort she could give him, but it had been something that Mickey didn't think too much of.

"Oh...okay, good!" Mickey smiled at her, if not a bit awkwardly.

Erica turned away to start eating her breakfast. She felt a certain memory flush back into her head. A memory regarding her time when Dylan was still alive.

* * *

 _Flashback to A Forest Path_

 _She couldn't believe it. They were caught as they made it to escape. The helicopter keys were in her hands, and they couldn't escape in time._

 _Dylan was furious. He knew they were going to face some massive punishment. He had to wonder what Lane had concocted for them in his sadistic mind._

 _She hadn't known it, but, his feelings for her had magnified over the course of their time together. The strange thing was that he previously hadn't felt much of anything before then. It was odd, really._

 _And then Lane revealed what it was that they were doing. A game of Russian Roulette. The type of game that would make anyone nervous._

 _It had been Erica, Jade, Hunter, Daisy, and Dylan, and all of them playing that one game, putting a gun up to their head and pull the trigger in the hopes that they wouldn't have a bullet in the chamber._

 _The revolver had been passed around the table, being passed off to all of them one by one. Erica could only just remember placing the gun up to the side of her_ head, _and spotting Dylan attempting to mask his worry._

 _He had masked it quite well, one would have to admit. Much better than others, and definitely much better than Jade's attempt to hide it._

 _She pulled the trigger, and to both her's and Dylan's relief, no bullet had entered her skull. Instead, the revolver simply clicked empty._

 _She could remember placing the pistol on the table, and moving it in her hand over to Dylan, his worry completely having completely faded, and in its place was a shade of confidence. She could just barely hear him curse under his breath as he put the gun in his mouth._

 _Again, no bullet had been fired. They were going to be home free. Clifford couldn't touch them now that they were still alive. Well, it was what they thought was the case._

 _Hunter screamed and fired the revolver. Except, it wasn't going through his own head. Instead, it crashed through Dylan's. His died instantly, and Erica almost screamed in horror. Almost._

 _She tried to look away, but she couldn't help it but watch. The person she thought she had entered a relationship with had toppled over in his chair. He was dead._

 _The second Lane went out to close the episode, Erica had returned to her room and sat down on her bed, her eyes staring at nothing as she replayed his death in her mind._

 _She had no idea how she was supposed to react. Dylan was a good man, even if others hadn't thought he was. She had barely even gotten to know him!_

 _Worse yet, it was someone who they thought they could trust that killed him. Wasn't one of Lane's rules that the contestants couldn't kill each other? Why wasn't Hunter punished? He should be the one dead, not Dylan!_

 _This wasn't supposed to be how he died. He was supposed to live a long life. Instead, it was taken away from him with a single bullet._

 _The alliance hadn't worked out in their favor at all. Yet, it had helped her form some friendships with the others. Jade was the main one._

 _She was a nice girl, smart, too. If she couldn't get out alive, maybe she could be the one to escape alive._

 _At least, that's what she thought before her morals had told her to help Mickey_.

* * *

Erica shook the memories out of her head. She did have to wonder, nonetheless, what made her gravitate towards Jade. She did have to admit, though, she did find Jade quite attractive.

Mickey pressed his lips together as he watched Erica eat, almost as if he wanted to ask something.

He wasn't sure how to say it, though. Up until recently, he never actually thought about death until Roxie. And even then, he hadn't thought so much about it until now.

He was scared, plain and simple, and much like those around him that still competed alongside with him.

Could he be one of the next ones to die? It really did frighten him. There was still so much he wanted to do! Like, explore the world and all of that! Wait...does that mean if...does that mean if he wants to live, Erica can't?

He could think any deeper than that when the loudspeakers went off, a voice echoing throughout the island.

"I'd recommend you start eating your breakfast. You'll need it for the next challenge." It was Lane. Looks like they weren't getting another day off, huh?

One by one, the eight other contestants filed into the cabin, sitting down at their respective tables. Except, Hunter held the side of his head in pain, for some reason. Lane stepped through the front door afterwards, holding two photos in his hands.

"You ten are in the final stretch!" He announced, reaching the board and placing one of the two on it, and revealing the first horrific image to the cast.

Alexei gasped at the sight. He could hardly believe that someone could go through such a brutal death.

It was Jade, her body split in half and blood leaking from the long cut along her body, blood had still been leaking out. Such a painful way to go. Hell, when had she even died? She fainted mid-execution, why hadn't Lane made it much more excruciatingly painful, or did he just not care?

"So, frankly, at the end of the day, only one of you ten will make it out alive. Keep that in mind, because you will have to betray your friends if you want to live."

He placed another photo on the board that made nearly everyone on the Phoenixes gasp in horror. Irina, however, smirked at the sight.

A recently deceased Eduardo, on the floor of the execution cabin, and a bloody hole in his stomach. Lord knows when they actually took the picture, because maggots had already started to feast off of the damage that had been done. His eyes were glassy and frozen, and his mouth open in shock.

They could no longer look at the photo and all of the Phoenixes turned away, Jace in particular, swallowing back an appalling taste.

"I can't say that last night's execution was simple." Lane said, leaning on his umbrella as he smirked deviously. "But, it had led to quite some drama." He left a hint in the hopes that someone would catch on. To his fortune, someone had, but only because someone else fucked up.

Chloe blushed slightly at remembering quite clearly what she had done that night. She turned to Timothy, who, while his blush wasn't as prominent, it was still there.

Alas, when Jace had looked up at them from across the room, he made the connection. "Are you shitting me?" He cursed, and the couple froze, their blushes fading and both their heads turning in Jace's direction. "Are you two…" He trailed off, gesturing to both of them.

Irina took a glance at the two, and then back to Jace. "Oh, so Scorn and Glee are lovers?" She spoke it in a way so that she announced it to the others that hadn't made the connection as of yet.

Erica took a moment to translate who both 'Scorn' and 'Glee' were supposed to be. Taking a look over at their opponents, she spotted Chloe and Timothy with very worried features upon their faces. Much like how Emily had thought yesterday, Erica recalled her own relationship in comparison. She and Dylan hadn't been the only people that became a couple.

Chloe twiddled her thumbs nervously, biting her lip, hard. Timothy put a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to reassure her.

"Well, that's going to hurt a lot when one of you finally die." Jace rolled his eyes. He didn't care whether or not they were an item, but if it helped him get further in the game, then so be it.

Chloe shrunk into her seat at Jace's negativity towards her. Why did this always seem to happen to her? Why did everyone give the impression that they hated her? Timothy was the only one to show her concern. Surely people couldn't be complete monsters and just vote them out because they could be seen as a threat, right? Wow, Timothy a threat...now that isn't something he ever thought possible.

"So cute!" Clifford smirked, bringing the attention of his hostages back to him. "How about we get to your challenge of the day?"

"Fuck off, Clifford." Hunter jeered, massaging his temples with both his index fingers. To his annoyance, Lane sent him a grin rather than a glare.

"You don't have a choice but to listen to me, Hunter." The sadist returned. "The challenge is going to be a brutal one." Clifford circled around the tables, and only stopping at the door. "Today, you get to design your own special machine to execute a member of the other team."

The cast exchanged glances, though the only one who seemed intrigued with this challenge was Irina.

"You have five hours to build a machine to execute someone of the opposing team, which, you may want to make as excruciatingly painful as possible, which will definitely help you in your second part of the challenge."

"And how are we supposed to build a machine?" Alexei asked.

"I was getting to that. A few of our interns have taken the materials not used in your previous challenge, and have dropped it off someplace else, and the same spot that one of you will die at." Nervous looks were spread throughout the room as Lane opened the door outside. "After you?"

* * *

Hell followed them through. That's what some of them began to think after everything they were forced into doing. They had no control over it. To them, the government had no concern about finding them, so they were, quite literally, on their own.

Where Lane led them wasn't what something any of them wanted to see ever again. Only about half of them had seen it live, and it was probably the single most brutal thing they could have ever seen.

The same spot that Jewel had practically been devoured by such lethal bugs and insects.

Though, they did have to admit that the scenery had changed since that disgusting execution. One addition to the location was several crates with mechanical gears and plates inside.

Throughout the entire walk there, Chloe and Timothy had been sent suspicious glares and glances from nearly anyone that wasn't Daisy, Erica, Mickey, or Alexei. Every few minutes, Timothy would lean down and mutter sweet nothings into her ear to help keep her spirits up as much as he could.

He couldn't help but feel that way. If Chloe was hurt, it would hurt him. He couldn't bear to see Chloe dejected.

All of this was just another complication to the game for Daisy. First it had been Emily she had to help protect them from, but now, it was everyone! Nobody could be trusted, and nobody should be trusted.

And if she wanted to get out, then she had to be the one that has to cut all ties with the couple at some point in time. Admittedly, neither of them should be killed, it's just the way their situation was.

"What if we don't do what you want, Avenue?" Irina asked the sadistic host as he began to trail behind, and the two team approaching the crates. At her words, all of them stopped and looked from Irina, then to Clifford.

Clifford smirked, and internally, he had been hoping that someone would ask him that at some point or another. "You don't have to complete the challenges…" He trailed off, noticing the hopeful looks on the cast members. "But, expect a death in the family once you do."

For a brief moment, they had felt hope within. And then, it was taken away without so much of a warning.

"Anyway, starting now, the ten of you have five hours to complete the machine. Also, keep in mind that these aren't the only mechanical pieces you may use, I encourage you to go around and searching for anything useful, have fun, people!" With that, Clifford turned his back to them, and walked along the gravel path, and leaving them behind.

Several of the Vipers appeared to refuse to open the crates for a long minute, watching Lane's retreating form. Behind them, however, the Phoenixes had already forced the wooden crate open, letting all the metal pieces fall into the grass.

The sound of all of the pieces scraping against each other let the Vipers realize where they were, and the team went to their own crate to push it over, just like the team before them had.

"This is so fucked up." Alexei cursed for the first time in the competition, reaching into the crate and pulling out two metal bars.

"Who cares anymore?" Emily couldn't help but say, "Chances are that we'll all end up dead." She didn't say it with venom, rather with exasperation. It wasn't that she was a negative person, more so, it was to simply keep them on their toes.

Either way, her thoughts were interrupted when a fist slammed into the side of her face, and causing her to take a step to the side, discombobulated, before rapidly crashing to the ground.

"Piss off, Emily!" Daisy shouted at the loner, retracting her fist and grabbing it with her hand from the minor pain that shot up through her hand.

From the ground, Emily clutched her cheek and sent Daisy a paralyzing glare. "You know what? Fuck it!" Daisy tossed her arms up while her alliance partners gave her looks of shock.

The rest of the cast only stared in disbelief at what was happening.

"Emily is a blackmailer and schemer!" She announced to everyone, and thus causing Emily's glare to fade, and instead being replaced with a look of agonizing.

Out of the remaining eight listening to her, eyebrows rose and others flickering their gaze down to Emily, who still lied down on the ground, only now, she was sitting up just a little.

Emily herself, mixed with her worry, felt her fear rising. Not because Daisy was exposing her, but because of the amount of attention being solely on her. Christ, she was so fucked! People and her don't see eye to eye, as soon as her team lost, or the merge came around, she would be gone. Damnit, where are those immunity idols?

"Fuck you." Emily sneered, just over a whisper, yet it was still loud enough for Daisy to hear her. "I hope you realize that you've just killed me."

Daisy turned to give Emily one last look before turning away and crossing her arms, walking to the crate and to continue the challenge with or without her team.

Emily struggled to get to her feet, her heart beating briskly in her chest, and the rest of the cast staring at her in disbelief. Taking a swift breath, she swallowed her fear down. "Don't make yourself seem so innocent, Daisy."

That got her attention. The girl scout stopped at the crate and spun around to look at the loner. "What?"

"We're practically the same! Both of us are trying to use alliances! Both of us have been responsible for executing an ally!"

Daisy rose an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the rebellion that you were a part of. Didn't you have a part to play in Dylan's death?"

"We are nothing alike!" Daisy shouted, taking a step towards Emily and with a glare.

Emily scowled. "Keep telling yourself that." With that, stomped off and took one quick glance over her shoulder at both her teammates and rivalling teammates.

Sure, what she said wasn't entirely true. But if she could get even a little of the focus off of her, then it's worth it.

Emily felt her heart pounding in her chest as she walked. All that attention on her was nauseating, and it could've been a lot worse. Fuck, how is she going to live now? Everyone will be setting their sights on her.

Chloe bit her lip, both her and Emily locking eyes for a split second as she passed. She swore the more she bit her lip, the more likely it would be for blood to seep from the wound.

Why did Daisy have to do that? Surely that wasn't necessary, they could've talked about it. No, now it seemed that Emily really could die at any point now, a frightening thought that only magnified at the thought that that very same thing could happen to her and Timothy. Oh God, what would become of her if he died? He can't die! She'll lose everything if he does!

Maybe she has to play strategic now? They made it into the final stretch of the game, she had to make sure she and Timothy would survive, no matter how much it hurt them. How it hurt to betray those around her. To be the one responsible killing these poor people.

'No, no! Put that out of your mind, Chloe!' She internally yelled at herself. How was she supposed to be strategic, anyway? She's a conspiracy theorist, things involving strategies aren't exactly her strong suit.

Maybe this was the best time to get her doubts off her chest? Yeah, that's a good idea.

Chloe took Timothy's hand, and upon him looking down at her, she motioned with her shoulder towards the cabin. He nodded in understanding and quickly followed her.

He couldn't help but wonder what was going through her head. She has to stay strong, stay optimistic. He promised her that they would get out together. She was fantastic! He couldn't lose her!

He won't let her drift away, he needs to bring her back down to remind her about who she was. Don't let this game get to her, she's better than it. He can't let it corrupt her like it did to Lizzy and Hunter.

As the duo stepped away from the challenge, Irina couldn't help but smirk at Emily's punishment. It was all what she deserved. But... seeing her comeuppance come full circle would be much more satisfying. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like she could touch her as of yet.

Speaking of, Jace seemed a bit too relaxed for her liking. And why was that? Perhaps he knew something she didn't? Unlikely, but possible. Or maybe he had located one of the three idols. Yes, that might be the case and is much more likely. He had been searching the graveyard, so of course he found one!

Irina chuckled to herself. How could someone screw himself over so badly? And considering her forced alliance with Emily, she could just drop Jace at any time, but first, she would have to locate that idol first.

Oh, killing this bastard should be fun!

Mickey dug his hands through the crate, his fingers wrapping around a metal shard, and pulled it out of the crate with as much strength he could muster.

It really was a miracle that he was still alive. Erica had made quite an effort to keep him alive, and seemed to do so despite knowing that she herself could be killed because of it.

While Mickey wasn't entirely the smartest, or bravest, but to him, he felt that it was his turn to protect Erica. She had already done whatever she could to protect him, couldn't he return the favor?

Maybe, Mickey was clueless when it came to these type of things, nor did he know how to be strategic, and neither did he know the mass extent of the situation he was in.

Chloe and Timothy seem nice, maybe he could ask Erica if they could join them? He could bring it up to her later today? Mickey hoped that it wouldn't hurt her feelings if he did ask her.

* * *

It all happened in a blur. The wet leaves under them cracked as they took their steps along the island. The rain was only just a minor inconvenience, they had come to think. What kind of place on Earth keeps raining?

They hated it. Hated this game. Hated what it was doing to them and these innocent people around them. It could corrupt anyone here, even the best of people could become complete monsters.

With that, they hated the fact that they had to go through the graveyard to get back to the cabin. Christ, it was so painful to see it. It reminded them of those people who died because of them. Because they were the ones voting to kill.

It didn't help that last night's execution made Chloe's heart fill with sorrow. She was so sure Timothy was gone and that she was the one to screw up their relationship.

"What's eating at you?" Timothy asked, focusing on her, and keeping the thoughts of the graveyard out of his mind. There was no optimistic in practically being the one to kill the innocent people around him.

Chloe exchanged glances with him. "I was just thinking about yesterday…" She trailed off, should she really tell him when she had been the one to hurt him?

Did he really even forgive her? What if he didn't? Then so be it, if she had crushed him then she could be the one that deserves to die the most.

"I...How could I have fallen for what Irina said?" She asked, tapping her fingers together nervously as she looked up at him. "My mind really must be that weak, huh?"

Timothy looked taken aback. Stopping her, he swung her around so that she was facing him. "Please don't say that about yourself. You're so much more than what you think you are. You aren't just some weak-minded conspiracy theorist, like you think.

"You're an intelligent girl who can see through the lines. If anyone wants information about anything, they come to you. If you think that no one cares about you, you're wrong. Chloe, you are the single best thing I think has ever happened to me. Please don't think that you're worthless!"

Chloe shut her eyes tight, and embraced him in a hug. She hated how she was, always putting herself down below others. Maybe Irina calling her 'scorn' was the right thing to do. The best she could do was to prove her wrong.

"Irina told me I shouldn't trust you. That you were a manipulator, a con-artist." Chloe revealed, placing her head on his shoulder as best she could as she talked, and he wasn't complaining.

Sure, Irina's points had been valid, but what she felt for him was real. If what she said was true, then everything she knows about herself was right. She really could be 'Scorn'.

"Oh, Chloe...I'm so sorry." Timothy was speechless, why would someone really want to hurt their relationship?

"Why? You didn't do anything. I did. I was the one that believed her, and seeing you with no marshmallow…" She choked on the next words she spoke, "Mortified me."

They pulled away from each other and looked into each other's eyes, Timothy gave her a small smile and they continued along the graveyard path steadily.

"I'm guessing Emily tried to blackmail you, somewhere in there." Timothy asked, recalling back to the meeting they had in the morning.

"Wow, aren't you subtle." Chloe joked with a slight smirk before frowning. "She did. But...it made me realize that Irina was wrong about you." Her eyes widen in realization. Irina was wrong about him. She was just trying to mess with her.

"And you're quite bold." Timothy joked back, causing her to swat his arm playfully. For just a brief second, they had forgotten how serious the situation was. The only good thing to come from any of this was their relationship.

However, all of that came to a stop when they reached one of the open graves. Chloe gasped in shock and covered her mouth with both her hands, her eyes widening. Timothy almost did the same, slapping his one hand over his mouth, he thought he was going to vomit as he staggered back at least two feet.

In the grave was Eduardo's corpse, his skin pale from the blood he lost, and maggots eating away at the hole in his chest.

Timothy was the first to move his hands away as he looked on with a mixture of disgust and horror. At least there could be one good thing to come with it. In Eduardo's chest, between all of the maggots, was one of the wooden immunity idols.

Chloe removed her hands, yet nearly felt like she could vomit at any second, and exchanged glances with Timothy, and then both looking to the immunity idol.

* * *

The rain plastered the skin of the contestants as they were forced to build a contraption to Clifford's design. Building a machine with the ability to kill hadn't seemed to fully register in their minds. They felt more so that they had developed an autopilot for whatever sick game Lane threw at them.

Couldn't deny it hurt, though. Blisters had formed on their palms as they gripped anything that could come of use to build their machines respectively.

Jace grunted as he placed his hands on the underside of a chair, and pulling it upwards, letting its legs dig into the dirt. Letting out an annoyed breath, he stuck a belt strap between two flaps on one of the armrests, and moving to find another belt.

God, why did they have to do this? Clifford is sick in the head, no one in their right mind should be able to do this. Be able to create these challenges to have those around them killed.

Hunter's mind echoed, rubbing his temples with his thumbs. His headache felt much more like a migraine then anymore less.

'How can you just sit around and do nothing while the person that wronged you is still standing free?' A voice in his head yelled at him.

It kept telling him those things over and over. Was he starting to lose his mind? What if he was?

Then again, it wasn't wrong. Why wasn't he doing anything? Did Alexei think he could play him and get away with it?

God, this headache was killing him. He couldn't think clearly.

For a second, he swore he heard that damn song playing in his ears again. No! Stop!

But should he listen to it?

No, that's a bad idea. It drives him mad! Or maybe it wouldn't bother him if he just embraced it?

Whatever the case, wasn't it supposed to be his decision?

"Hey, Hunter, why don't you be useful here?" Jace had come up, and taking the kleptomaniac out of his thoughts, and shot him a glare. Almost unconsciously, he reached into his back pocket and pointed a CZ-USA 85 Combat a Jace's chest.

Gasps erupted, and the clash of metal slammed against the ground. All of them had seen what Hunter had done.

Not even the kleptomaniac could believe what he had just done, and he swore he heard the cameramen cock their rifles, and a few of them bore into the back of his head.

Before he knew it, Hunter felt his demons take over, his eyes changing from that of concern and realization, to that of evil and chaos. He rose the pistol and pointed it at Alexei's chest, ready to pull the trigger.

That was, until he felt the flow of electricity flow into him. It was felt more than anyone could imagine. It wasn't just a slight tingle, it felt as if a live wire had been jammed into his brain and nerves, and then switched to life.

Hunter's body convulsed violently and suddenly from a long electrical current pulsing through him. It only stopped when Brendan did stop the spring-loaded taser.

The intelligent introvert could make out the looks of confusion and uncertainty if they should make a break for the gun. Ultimately, they decided not to when Brendan placed his foot on top of it, and then bent down to pick it up.

None of them could hardly believe what they had just seen. Hunter was about to take another human life. In cold blood.

Though, out of all of them, Alexei had obviously been the most frightened. He watched Hunter's unconscious frame, and replaying the scene in his head. The barrel of a gun was pointed right at him. Right at him, and he survived?

Still, he wasn't exactly out of the clear yet. No one was. He still had to outlive nine more people. Oh, this wasn't good.

* * *

Holy fucking shit.

Those were the three words circling around Corrow's mind as he let his rental pull to a stop. Shifting the gears into park, Corrow internally told himself to keep his doors unlocked.

After all, who would be dumb enough to rob a car, in front of a police station, in broad daylight.

As he began to open his car door, he let his mind begin to shift back to the reason he was doing this. The first day that this 'game' began, Chris McLean's body had been found in a dumpster. Murdered by Clifford Lane in using Owen Slater's hand.

In fact, why hadn't Lane sent Wagner for the murder? It just doesn't seem to make much sense. Hell, what was Wagner's purpose on the island, anyway?

And now, Simon Wagner was dead and locked inside of a cooler to preserve his body.

It was a cynical thought, and yet it was something that he deserved in the end. Christ, this had to be the most infuriating investigation of his career. Every lead he got only led to a dead end. And when one that could be remotely helpful, it led to himself fucking up.

As in, Owen Slater's death. As in, Simon Wagner's death. He was fucking himself over, he needed to do something, and now. If this phone was his key lead, then he couldn't fuck up now. This could be the closest he's ever gotten to finding the island.

That's the difference between himself and those on the island, though. His thoughts compared to theirs. But to be frank, that's why he's a detective. Their brain works differently. Picture the gears in their head turning, but for him, they would turn backwards.

God, he can only imagine their thoughts as they were being picked off one by one. Today, ten people remained alive, and soon, that number was only going to lower down to the final number between double digits...and single digits.

That's so wrong. That number should've been higher, and the reason it isn't was his fault. His fault that he couldn't get anything out of Slater or Wagner.

Instead, he just pulled the trigger and killed both of them. He blew out Slater's brains and let Wagner take a tumble off a bridge.

Why couldn't that Interpol agent, Harvey Bender, or whatever his name was...why couldn't he get them off the island? It would both save those kids and make his job that much easier.

It makes him wonder. How could the mind of one psychopathic sadist come up with all of this? And even if he wants to kill Lane when he finds him...if he finds him, he'll have to force himself to not kill him, too.

Clifford Lane deserves to be arrested and locked up for the rest of his life. He deserves to suffer, and much more preferably, in isolation.

Why does that seem to raise a question in his mind? If he were to rank the most evil people to ever live, how far would Lane be up on that scale?

Sure, some people have killed some up to millions of people, and others, thousands. But Lane has been killing teenagers between ages sixteen to eighteen for about three weeks now!

Hell, three weeks is most likely incorrect at that. Who knows how many days off Land gives them? It's almost as if to let the death of someone who was possibly a friend sink in. And then start it up all over again.

It was already horrible that fourteen of the twenty-four families will never see their child again, and even that number will go further upwards.

At first, Lane had stated that he had gotten permission from the Canadian government to do this, but after the first episodes aired, the government denied all of it.

Of course, that doesn't mean that they were telling the truth. Wow, sounds like that conspiracy theorist girl would enjoy throwing her own theory out there had she not be in the middle of this tragedy with them.

Corrow forced all of those thoughts out of his mind. He couldn't bare to think about any of that right now. Not when the most vital pieces of information were at stake.

In fact, sneaking into the station just seemed to be the easy part. All he had to do was at least look the part of a detective, and flash his badge just quick enough so he looked like the real deal.

But none of that ever really mattered when it came to police stations. Nobody cared who you were when you entered the building. To them, you were either a civilian or a cop.

Besides, when it came to large police stations in a large city, nobody knows anyone. The only person that does is most likely the commissioner, so as long as Corrow looked the part, he should be fine...for the most part, that is.

At least, in the station he worked in, his point would be noticed. But when it came to Los Angeles, who knows?

The easiest part of his day would probably just be walking into a police station that he doesn't work with, and more specifically, the restricted areas.

Corrow had already entered the station during his train of thought, and during that time, he hadn't seen anyone send him suspicious glances. Obviously, that will be soon to change.

He continued down the police station hallway, and by the time he recalled where the evidence rooms were usually built into a station, he had noticed the elevator coming up just a few feet from where he stood.

Fact-wise, it wasn't even a hallway at all. To his left was the entire station, all of the officers sitting at their desks.

Pressing the elevator button, Corrow made sure he had his back to the rest of the station. If they were to see someone they hadn't before, and watch him enter the restricted areas, it would certainly raise a few eyebrows.

As soon as the door opened, Corrow made a step in and pressed his fingers against the bottom level button. Making himself seem discreet just enough by pressing his back to the elevator and keeping his head down low enough so that no one could see his face.

It felt like an eternity before the doors finally shut, and as soon as they did, he dropped his head to face down at the floor, and placed his hands on his eyes, rubbing them with his thumbs in slight irritation.

This is going to be much more grueling than he previously anticipated.

What felt longer than the doors opening was waiting for the doors to reopen on a different floor. To him, he was just lucky enough that someone hadn't joined the elevator with him.

He watched the elevator levels slowly lowered further and further to the bottom level of the building. As soon as he reached it, the doors opened and he stepped out, and being met by a silver steel door and a key card door lock.

Hearing the sound of the doors behind him shut made his heart begin to race. Despite the sound, he kept a calm demeanor, reaching into pocket to pull out a pen.

Taking one look over his shoulder, despite knowing there was no point in doing so. His heartbeat raced in his chest as he placed the pen under the key card lock, and forced his hand upwards.

Holding the door handle, he forced the handle downwards, and the door began to open.

Corrow held his breath as he forced the door open and disappeared inside the evidence room. At least the crappy card locks are actually useful when it came down to the police trying to get through a get through a horrific investigation.

It was too late to go back now. He was already too far in. He needed to find the evidence taken from Wagner's corpse.

Corrow took a quick look over the evidence room upon making sure to shut the door behind him. Judging from the way things had been filed, and because it was a recent case, finding the item he was looking for shouldn't be too difficult.

It was only proved to be easy when he spotted a shine, flickering off something made of glass, and only from the corner of his eye.

Approaching the pieces of evidence, Corrow internally let out a sigh of relief. Thank God they hadn't bagged them in anything other than plastic bags thus far. Quickly, the detective opened the bag and pulled the cracked phone out.

He pushed the power button, and, to his relief, the screen flashed to life. When it did, he glanced at the upper corner of the screen, spotting the thirty remaining battery power it had left. Powering it back off, so that it wouldn't lose much more power, he spun the phone in his hand as he thought.

Corrow could hardly believe that this was what he was doing. Sneaking into another police station and stealing something from the evidence room. It didn't sit right with him. He promptly made himself give up those thoughts with just a few words, however: 'To hell with it!'

After all, what did it matter, anyway? They're going to destroy most of the evidence in the room as it was, anyway. Besides, there wasn't much of a crime to solve there, anyway. Wagner was dead, and he was killed in self-defense.

For a moment longer, Corrow stood in the room, and before someone could walk in and question why he was holding the phone of a crime scene victim, he slipped it into his jacket pocket, and started off.

* * *

Building the machines had been the easy part. What came next was simply horrific. Yet another person was going to die, and this time, they played a direct role in the death. In the past, they may have been the cause, but every time, it was one of Lane's interns to pull the trigger.

The Phoenixes had built their machine to be deadly, and really, that was all there was to it. A chair, having been placed on the ground, with enough sharp objects to pierce the human skin.

The Vipers, on the other hand, had built a contraption a bit more complicated. The user would have to stand on a wooden platform and have their arms strapped onto these wooden boards, forcing their arms outwards. The same with their legs, strapped together to a metal beam sticking from the dirt floor.

Within the next ten minutes, another person was going to be dead. Fucking Clifford Lane.

"So, who won?" Emily asked as she and the others returned. They hadn't been told the second part of the challenge as of yet, if not only warned.

Though, people to tend to forget things when under such immense pressure.

"Neither of you, quite yet." Clifford smirked, the rain pattering off his umbrella as his feet crunched on the gravel pathway he walked along. "The way we decide a winner this time is a bit different. This time, the losers will not vote." As he spoke, he circled around the cast, and had received some of them to lean forward in satisfaction.

"Instead, everyone shall."

At those few words, their heartbeats accelerated. What were they hearing?

"This time, both teams will vote for a member of the opposite team to force into your torture machine. The team that loses a member first, well, loses the challenge. Simple, really."

"Yeah, simple." Jace rolled his eyes, and his teeth clenched, to which, Clifford ignored.

"So, vote among yourselves!"

A chill ran through their spines, gaining enough effort to huddle together with their teams. Lane, if your goal is to cause your hostages to feel guilty for being entirely responsible for at least one death here, then you've done so.

"Hunter. You saw what he tried to do!" Daisy was the first to speak for the Vipers. "He pulled a gun! A gun! On Alexei!"

Alexei looked downtrodden. It wasn't like he had much of a choice, did he? Letting his gaze rise to Daisy, he nodded in agreement.

Chloe opened her mouth to speak of Irina's name. Only that, when she did, she recalled the circumstances, what could happen to her. Sure, Irina made her hurt Timothy, but does she deserve to die because of it? No!

Timothy, on the other hand, frowned. This was the hardest part of each challenge. And more so for the team that ultimately lost. He always hated voting for his own team, but voting for a member of the other just felt as bad.

With nothing to say, he merely nodded at Daisy. He couldn't bring up someone else's name, if he had, wouldn't that make him responsible should they die?

"Then it's settled." Daisy smiled, and purposely ignoring Emily, refusing to let her get a single word in, as if she would, that is.

As the Vipers had been debating, the Phoenixes had a much more interesting conversation.

"I thought it was obvious. We vote out Emily. We can't have that kind of threat in the game, you realize what she could do to us, don't you?" Much like what Daisy had done, Jace had taken the liberty of being the first to take control of the process.

"No, no, Sly. Evanescence can be eliminated at any time. Do you really want such a big threat to be removed this early, and especially when she blindsides people like us?" Irina reasoned. In actuality, however, she simply didn't want Emily letting out her info this early. Later, sure, but now? No. "I suggest we vote for the one person who has remained under the radar so far, Hike."

"Why?" Jace returned. "We all know they're voting for Hunter after today's performance, so why would we vote for Alexei? With Hunter dead, Alexei's as good as dead anyway."

"But do you really want to take that chance?" Irina pushed. "What if Renegade isn't the one to die? You realize that with Hike still in the game, he may kill us as well. You remember what he did to Pride, don't you? What he did today?"

Jace paused.

"I thought so. All in favor? Youth, Gutsy?"

They hadn't spoken a word since the beginning of the discussion, and Hunter was still unconscious. Finally, Erica nodded.

Irina clasped her hands together. "Excellent!"

Clifford smirked. Had he been eavesdropping on the conversations? Perhaps just to know when they were done talking.

"Decisions, decisions." He smirked, cocking his head towards the Vipers. "Vipers?"

Daisy formed a scowl. "Hunter." She hissed his name with venom.

Clifford's smirk only grew wider. "And Phoenixes?"

"We choose Hike!" Irina smiled, glee and mischief glinting in her eyes.

Alexei slouched forward. Of course she would convince them to pick him. She really did seem to have it out for him.

Erica picks up Hunter's unconscious form, and proceeded towards the Vipers' execution machine as Alexei stepped over to their own. Standing him up was the easy part, strapping him in, something else entirely.

"Remember, these choices are final. You have sent one of these two, to the death. I hope you're around of yourselves." Clifford smiled evilly as he took a step back, allowing himself to get a complete view of both machines.

"You got this." Timothy attempted to reassure Alexei as he strapped him into the Phoenixes' machine. In return, Alexei shot him a sideways smile. It was a shame they hadn't gotten to know each other, maybe they could've become good friends.

Maybe they still could?

Almost at once, both machines were activated, and just as Timothy took a step away. The blades on the Phoenixes' execution machine flicked downwards and shred through Alexei's shirt and chest. He let out a scream of pain as blood leaked onto the mechanical blades.

Slowly, they began to lift back up before letting themselves fly back into his chest once again.

Hunter, on the other hand, snapped awake as soon as he felt the machine start to pull on his body, cracking a few of his bones within his elbows.

At taking a quick glance around, he froze as soon as he discovered that the machine's goal was to slowly rip his arms off.

After a moment, Alexei wasn't the only one screaming.

It felt like hours that went by, and pain flowing through the both of them as the torture was forced to continue until one of them died.

At a quick glance to the other contestants, one could easily tell that the only person that was actually watching the execution was Irina and Clifford. The rest, they felt too nauseous to continue watching.

They put them through this, and they couldn't even watch it.

Ultimately, one of the two was forced to give in. Their blood had sprayed in every direction, and spluttered the red watery liquid from his mouth.

Leaning forward in his seat, Alexei paled, feeling the blades retract from his body one last time. His shirt was stained the crimson red color, and he opened his mouth to say his final words before he passed on. Only, he never got them out.

The hiker slouched down in the chair, his glassy eyes frozen at staring into nothing. His life was over. Alexei was the next one to die.

It had been so slow and painful. There were so many things he wanted to do, and now his life was cut short. Now, he would never see his family again. His parents would never get to see their boy grow up.

Seeing as how no one was going to let Hunter down, Brendan approached the machine and did so himself. Though, he almost regretted it when he took a quick look at Alexei's corpse.

"Serves you right."

* * *

Oh, the tension was so sweet.

Today, some questions arose through the minds of the contestants sitting at their respective team tables. They had always gotten the same dinner every night. Some macaroni and cheese, along with some lettuce.

Not that they could complain. At this stage, any belief of being a vegan or vegetarian had gone right out the window.

Anyway, who could they trust anymore? They thought Emily was just the quiet alone type, none of them ever thought her to be a schemer. The same goes for Hunter, he had some morals when he shot Dylan, but now? Now he's just gone completely insane.

Where was Hunter, anyway? Up in his room, most likely. That would be the first intelligent thing he's done all day. To stay away from the people around him. Hell, where did he get that pistol from?

Too many questions. Too many. And some of them, despite being asked, they hadn't wanted to be answered.

Irina was the first to finish her dinner. Or rather, she took about two bites and stated she was done. She had something to do regarding Jace.

Swiftly, she made her way upstairs and soon found herself at the front of Jace's door. Chances are that it would be unlocked. After a challenge and with no one in the room, it is most likely unlocked.

Turning the doorknob clockwise, she pushed the door open and shut it quickly behind her. Wouldn't want someone catching her in someone else's room, that was Emily's job.

Now, why was he so relaxed? Obviously, if he did have the idol, he wouldn't keep it in plain sight and nor would he have it on his person.

So where could it be?

Irina scanned the room and tapping her chin in thought. What caught her eye was a still semi-open drawer.

She smirked and opened it. Nebiros' suspicions were confirmed to be correct, because right there, right on top of his clothes, was one of the three immunity idols.

"Well, well, Sly. Seems you've found yourself a trophy." She smirked and placed her hand on the wooden idol. Oh, how easy it would be to just take it, but what was the fun in that?

Sure, it would cause an outcry from Jace, but it would be too obvious that she was the one who took it. Besides, she had other plans.

Without another word, Irina shut the drawer and left the room. This just got so much more interesting than she hoped for it to be.

Thing was, the person she came face to face when she stepped out was Chloe and Timothy, their hands interlocked with each other's. Fuck, that made her sick.

"Scorn, Glee." Nebiros greeted, folding his hands behind his back. "What are you doing here?"

"My room." Chloe stared, gesturing down the hall at one of the doors. Irina just hummed in response. "Isn't that Jace's room?" She noticed, glancing over Irina's shoulder.

"Of course it is." Irina nonchalantly replied, figuratively waving her off. "Why the relationship, Scorn?" She asked, her eyes wandering down to their interlocked hands.

Now Chloe scowled, and even when Timothy placed his other hand on her shoulder, it hadn't done anything to change her scowl. "Because I care for him."

"No, I got that. But did nothing I say sink in?" Irina tapped her forefinger against Chloe's head for emphasis.

"Chloe-" Timothy tried, growing concerned at Chloe's angered expression.

"You people can't control me, and if I feel like kissing Timothy, then so be it!" The conspiracy theorist countered, freeing her hand from Timothy's and kissing him full on the lips, much to Irina's chagrin.

Her eye twitched and let her arms fall harmlessly to her side. "Well then don't let me get in the way of your feelings for each other. But if you won't listen to me, then perhaps Glee will." With that, Irina was off, forcing herself not to push both of them out of the nearest window.

Seeing that Irina was gone, Chloe disconnected herself from him and frowned, shooting a shocked Timothy an apologetic look. "I'm sorry! I don't know why I did that!"

The optimist shook himself out of the shock. "Well, I can't say I'm complaining. Here, let me show you something."

Chloe cracked a small smile and glanced down to his open hand. She happily took it and the both of them walked back towards her room. They both stepped inside and shut the door behind them.

To Chloe's shock, her camera sat neatly on her bed and facing towards her. And in working order.

"How did-?" Chloe started, grabbing the camera and starting to flick through the pictures she previously took.

"I had some help from Daisy." Timothy admitted, dropping both his hands into his pocket, and feeling something solid. Like a piece of wood.

Chloe smiled sweetly at him. "Timothy! Thank you!" He smiled back, sitting down on the bed next to her, and pulling the idol out of his pocket.

"I think you should have it."

"What?" Chloe's smile faded, and a look of disturbance filling her appearance. "Me? Timothy, no! You've already done so much for me, let me do something for you!"

Timothy just shook his head. "You already have. I need to repay you somehow."

"You did!" Chloe lifted the camera. "We both need to come to a decision, and I will not take the idol after doing so many good things for me that I haven't even begun to pay back!"

"Your existence is enough to pay me back." Timothy spoke simply, his smile never fading as he dropped the idol in her small hands.

Chloe looked between the idol and Timothy, then, without warning, she leaped at him in a hug. Irina couldn't have been any more wrong about him. Yet, one question still ringed in her ears. How did he fall for someone like her?

* * *

A soft knock came at Hunter's door, and the kleptomaniac moodily got up to open it. Goddamnit, who was it now? Another person to punch him for attempting to kill Hunter?

He was proved wrong when he saw Clifford and Brendan standing in the doorway, a pistol in the sadist's hands.

"Hello, Hunter." Lane greeted, pushing past Hunter to examine the room. He has never actually seen his room in person. Brendan stepped in afterwards, and Hunter shut the door.

"What do you want, Clifford?" He asked. He had to admit, his fear of Lane had faded since his brainwashing, but it had instead rose his anxiety for when he did listen to that fucking song.

"Just to give this back to you." Clifford held out the same CZ-USA 85 Combat pistol. "After today, you may need it after making so many enemies."

Hunter glanced between the gun and Clifford, as if silently determining whether he was being serious or not. And then, without warning, he snatched the gun out of Clifford's hand and pointed it right at his head, and pulled the trigger.

The gun clicked, and Lane simply smirked. "Safety's on."

Before Hunter could correct his mistake, Brendan placed an earbud in the kleptomaniac's ear, and pressing the 'play' button a phone he brought, and playing a certain song once again, and much to Hunter's horror.

"But, we cannot have someone insane with all that power. That's just ridiculous!"

Hunter dropped the gun to his side and gave Clifford a blank look. They could just barely hear the song playing in his ears.

Clifford smiled. "Good boy."

* * *

Each of the nine remaining contestants filed into the execution cabin. It had come as a sudden announcement, but at seeing both teams at the execution, it wasn't too difficult to discover what was going to happen.

Well, for some of them, that was. Their guilt returned when they saw Alexei's body lying on a table, and his head looking straight up at the ceiling.

"I'm glad you could all make it." Clifford leaned on his umbrella, letting his eyes wander over each of the nine remaining players, before turning to signal for someone backstage.

On cue, Brendan emerged from the back of the room and holding a gas can in his hands. He approached Alexei's body and tilted it sideways, allowing the gasoline to pour over his body. The contestants only watched with a mixture of horror and shock.

As soon as Brendan was done, he dropped the gasoline and circled around the table, right next to Clifford, who was holding a matchbox.

"Vipers, Phoenixes, I'm sure you can all guess why I called you all down here," Clifford started, opening the matchbox and taking one, sliding it down the side to let it catch fire, "but, if you haven't, the teams have been officially merged." With all that said, Clifford tossed the match over his shoulder, and right on Alexei's body.

In an instant, Alexei's body burst into flames, eating away at his skin and clothes.

Almost none of the contestants had comprehended what he had just said due to the growing fire. After a long few seconds, the information had finally crossed their minds.

Clifford extended his arms, and rather than doing the outro of the show when leaving the execution cabin, he did so with the growing fire behind him.

"Which one of you are going to go next, I'll enjoy finding out with you. Have a good night everyone, and stay tuned for the next episode in Total Drama Zenith!"


	14. What Have You Become?

**AN: I don't know what to put here other than I hope you enjoy! What else do I need to say? I dunno. I may not upload any more of this story for the rest of the month, so, Happy Halloween everyone!**

 **ShadowJcreed:** Thanks! You didn't expect Alexei to be the next one to go, hm? Interesting...

 **AZW330:** Seriously, considering who he is, I don't think it would surprise many people if he killed all of his own interns.

Thanks, I wanted it to seem like that, so thank you!

Overall, I think the last chapter was a major step down from the one before it, and to me, it felt like it was more of a filler than anything. So...yeah. And maybe Chloe and Timothy become much more dangerous in the future chapters, that's possible, I think, considering.

Emily is gonna really have to play it safe now, and she may need so more allies after that last chapter...I'm not actually hinting at anything, just rambling.

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare:** Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

 **ThorBringsTheThunder:** Congrats! And thank you! Fun fact, Alexei was originally going to be the third or fourth person eliminated, but I changed it later on. I also don't really know what to say with the rest of your review other than 'cool, thanks!' So, I think I'll just leave it here.

 **keyblademaster avenger:** Thank you, and here you are!

 **WarriorAuthor1127:** Interesting predictions, it seems that you'll have to see whether or not you're correct in this episode. And, here you are! The next chapter!

* * *

What Have You Become?

Eerie. Completely eerie. Those were the simple words that could be used to describe this horrific island, where now countless people were dead. Their lives having completely ended in the place they auditioned to compete.

Why was this still happening to them? Was anyone even trying to find them? At this point, probably not. If anyone was, then it sure was taking a very long time.

Maybe Chloe's theory wasn't so crazy after all. Maybe this could be a conspiracy on a multi-government scale, perhaps Clifford was hired by the government to deal with the overpopulation problem?

What if they weren't the only ones going through this kind of situation? What if this was only the start? Or if Lane would even let the winner go should they reach the end of this competition.

At some point in time, a certain couple of people had thought those thoughts just before they went to sleep. All of them worried that they would never wake up in the morning.

As it was, almost none of them could believe that they had reached the merge. Only nine of them left, and to get out alive, they had to let eight of them die. Oh Christ, they were so close. The end was within their grasp.

Some of them couldn't deny that Alexei's pale eyes had burned into their heads. As much as they wanted to be used to be a corpse, they couldn't be. Death wasn't something anyone could get over, unless you were a complete psychopath like Clifford was.

And then there was the sociopath that was Emily. Though she couldn't help but feel a bit guilty for those people she caused the deaths of. Roxie, Jade, and even Eduardo, she was the one who killed all three of them, and combined with the weight of her brother…

Then again, she only did what she does to survive. Anyone has to, even if it means to push someone into oncoming traffic, and neither had she ever felt so alive!

On the dock of Paspinêw Island stood the same man who masterminded such a dangerous plot in the first place. Leaning slightly to the side, he held his umbrella high above his head only to let the rain pattering against it, and slide off onto the dock that he stood atop.

The sadist let his head roll over the bowl of his shoulders. Destroying their emotions was never more satisfying, and it was only going to get that much more fun.

Clifford let his eyes rest on the camera, and he smirked in knowing what he had in store for the hostages today. While forcing them to kill one of themselves from the previous challenge, today, he had something else in store, something that he couldn't help but smirk at the thought of.

"Last time on Total Drama Zenith, our two teams were forced to build a machine to have the other team's member executed in a spectacular fashion, and similarly as to how Emily was exposed for the blackmailing schemer that she is.

"Timothy accepted Chloe's apology, and they took a walk to talk about what our contestant, Irina had done to 'mess' with her. Though it was in their fortune when they found one of the three immunity idols and leaving one final idol in the air, its location unknown to everyone but me.

"As opposed to Emily's game blowing up thanks to Daisy, some could say the same thing about Hunter, and nor could he ever get an ally himself after pulling a gun on his alliance partner and rival, Alexei. At the end of the day, however, he got what he wanted with Alexei being the one to die.

"Now, nine players remain and let's be honest when I say that they all want to kill me. Will they get to? Obviously not, but as for who the next player to be eliminated will be, I couldn't tell you, but I will enjoy discovering it myself tonight. Where our merged final nine shall become the final eight. So I hope my audience of those who enjoy torturing these teens just as much as I do, you sit back and relax as my hostages go through another excruciatingly painful day, here on Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

"So cold…" Someone whispered, shivering as he felt the frigidness of the cool air touch his skin from the air vent above his head.

The room was pitch black, and he felt a kind of metal taste in his mouth, his blood leaking from his lip and dropping to the floor in small repeated drips, onto the tiled floor of an unknown color.

He felt his ribs broken in his chest, loose piercing the side of his chest every time he made any kind of movement. It hurt so much more when the person torturing him would return.

His goosebumps along his arms as he never had the power to touch them in any type of form. Though he couldn't see it, the pain in his face couldn't feel any worse than what it was, feeling his skin swelling into bruises.

"Shall we try again?" He felt the wind of the sadistic host of this show walk past him, the tap of an umbrella tip echoing throughout the room every other step he took.

Then there was a silence.

And then, his hands had wrapped around his shoulders, feeling his umbrella swinging back and forth on Lane's wrist as it just reached his open back before it swung back to tap against his leg.

Clifford squeezed his shoulders gently, and spoke in a chilling voice, "I just want to know how you found us."

He coughed, the stream of blood splattering against the ground. He felt Clifford begin to tap his fingers along his shoulders.

"Come on, it's a simple question." Clifford let go, jumping his arm in the air, letting his umbrella fly to his hand, and then forcing it against the floor, a loud tap echoing throughout the dark room. It was a sign that he was losing his patience.

Again, silence.

Finally, a crack of light entered the room as a door was opened and shut, a man with red hair walking over as Clifford folded one of his hands behind his back.

"I'm assuming he isn't cooperating." St. Clarence asked, circling around their prisoner, though never actually making any attempt to lock eyes with him. "I almost figured, he always was a stubborn child."

Clifford smirked. "How unfortunately...for him." He let his hand wander towards the tools that St. Clarence had prepared beside him, scooping up a knife in his hands.

The person in the chair looked up at St. Clarence, and at the same time, he looked at him, too. They really did look exactly the same. Obviously, being identical twins and all.

The only reason that he had been found was when Clifford brought up his apology regarding Deveraux's death. He suspected Wesley to be here. After all, he was disappointed in him when he left the CIA, but he continued working for Interpol.

He had been working for Harvey and Dandy, but they still had to know how they got on the island, and how. Who knows how much information they could've relayed, it was too dangerous to take the risk of just killing him and be done with it, as much as Clifford wanted to.

"Well, he isn't talking. Let's take this up a notch, shall we?" Clifford asked, one hand folded behind his back as he slowly circled around him, though watching St. Clarence giving his brother blank look the whole time.

Wesley St. Clarence felt his heart pounding in his chest, Christ, if only Interpol gave their spies cyanide should they have been caught. Though, they weren't the CIA, and this was supposed to be a special assignment.

He had no idea his brother was going to be here.

Clifford shot St. Clarence a smirk, and, with movements so fast he barely saw it, brought the knife from around his back, and quickly plunged the blade into his knee.

Wesley let out an ear-piercing scream, and it only increased further when Clifford twisted the blade left and right, watching with intrigue as his blood soaked his pants, and dripping down his leg onto the floor.

He let out a few quick breaths to attempt to keep himself calm, yet it clearly wasn't working as his bloodshot eyes simply watched in terror as Clifford played with the knife in his leg, and smirking evilly at Wesley.

"Fuck! Goddamnit!" The young man screamed, exasperated.

St. Clarence shifted his gaze to Clifford, and then back to Wesley. All this death and pain really was intoxicating, wasn't it?

"Okay! Jesus, okay!" Wesley panted, trying his best to pull his hands from the cuffs to stop Clifford, only that his best wasn't enough.

"Ah, and he cooperates at last!" Clifford smiled, letting the knife remain in his knee as he stepped back, rubbing his blood-stained hands together.

Wesley glared at Clifford, and then to his brother, though it softened. "It was the same way Dandy and Harvey got on the island," he managed to choke out, his eyes wandering down to the knife that stuck out of his knee. Oh God, it looked like it was about a foot deep. "But I had no idea that Jerome was going to be here."

St. Clarence cocked his head to the side, his eyes narrowing into a glare.

"And have you informed anyone on the island's location?" His brother asked, his tone was calm, yet deadly. Cold, even.

Wesley shook his head. "No. I couldn't. Not where we are, wherever the hell we are." Wesley locked eyes with St. Clarence, and before he could get another word in, Clifford started to speak.

"Thank you for answering our questions." He stood up, folding one hand behind his back, while his other gripped the knife handle, and quickly pulled it out of his knee, and resulting in a groan to come from him.

St. Clarence eyed his brother as Clifford looped around the chair, eyeing the knife, lowering his hand to place it back on the on the tray beside Wesley.

"And with that…" Lane continued, trailing off as he tossed the knife up in the air by only a couple of inches, and then bringing it to Wesley's neck, an explosion of blood covering the knife as he sunk it in.

Wesley gasped in surprise as he felt the piece of metal penetrate his skin, and even got a look of shock on St. Clarence's usually calm face.

A river of crimson pooled out of the brother's mouth, and Clifford pulled the knife away, ignoring the blood marks that splashed over his trench coat sleeves.

Sucking in one last breath, Wesley's head dipped downwards, leaving a smirking Clifford and a shocked St. Clarence.

There was no sound at all. No one wanted to make one. All there was was the slow drops of a red liquid that occasionally dripped onto the floor.

"Why?" St. Clarence asked, looking at his brother's corpse. "Did you really need to do that?"

"No, but I did feel like it." Clifford responded, dropping the knife to the table, and letting it slide across the metal tray, the blood sticking from one object to the other.

"He was my brother. As much as I hate him...why?" The brainwasher hissed, glancing from Wesley's corpse to Clifford's eye, and spotting a glint of insanity shining through.

"I thought you already knew the answer to that. In fact, I thought everyone knew that." Clifford dropped the knife on the tray, tapping his umbrella against the ground as he looped around to come face to face with him.

Placing his fingers to his temples, Clifford extended his thumbs to stick out, his right hand sticking out to point towards the ceiling, and his left hand to point towards the ground. "Because I'm fucking crazy!" At that last word, he twisted his fingers to face their opposite direction, and the same direction his fingers had been just a moment prior.

* * *

With someone else's death on the island, it was almost surprising that no one else had come to know about it. In fact, they were completely oblivious to it.

Yesterday was bad for everyone. Anyone that was still alive on the island had been responsible for the latest death among them. All of them. Poor Alexei, what did he do to anyone? He didn't deserve to die.

Then again, who did? It was strange, they had to vote for someone, yet was it really there fault that it was him who died? Why couldn't Hunter have used that damn pistol to shoot Clifford between the eyes?

It doesn't matter anymore. What matters is getting out alive. And for some of them, that may prove to be much more difficult in regards to a certain couple.

Chloe skipped almost joyfully down the hallway, momentarily forgetting the nature of the situation she was in. Her hair bounced about on her shoulders at every leap, and her camera swinging back and forth over her shoulder.

For just the moment, she couldn't have been any happier. Part of the final nine, and with a boyfriend. She never, ever expected anything like this to happen. Not to her at the very least.

And then reality set back in. Considering that they were a couple, and in an alliance with Daisy, it was likely that they would be viewed as threats. Oh shit, why did this have to get more and more difficult?

All at once, she reached her destination and spun herself around to face a door. Reaching for the handle, the conspiracy theorist hesitated for a moment, briefly thinking back to what Irina had said to her.

Ultimately, she pushed it out of her mind as she twisted it open, poking her head through.

On the bed, Timothy appeared to be dressed, though he sat with the blankets on top of him. Glancing at the door, he grinned as Chloe took a quick look around the room.

"Bad time?" She asked, cautious that she hadn't wandered in on those exact words, extending her foot outside to make a quick escape should that be the case.

"No, you're fine. Come in." Was the response, you could almost hear the smile on Timothy's face.

Chloe cracked a small smile, stepping into the room and shutting the door behind her softly. She had no idea how to start what it was that she wanted to say.

"Timothy…" She started, making a slow approach towards her boyfriend and twiddling her thumbs nervously, "I shouldn't be the one to have this idol. I don't want you to be the one with a life on the line."

Timothy locked eyes with the conspiracy theorist and shook his head slowly, his smile never fading.

"You've made me feel more alive than I ever have," Timothy told her with a smile, "If only one of us can get out of here, I really want it to be you. You deserve to be happy. Deserve to live a good life after all of this."

Chloe dropped her head to her hands. She couldn't believe what he was saying. No one had ever cared for her as much as he did, and made her eyes water. "Timothy…" She choked out, placing a hand over her mouth, her eyes blinking out the tears she had begun to shed.

Timothy frowned. He hated seeing her like this. But if there was anyone that he saw that needed to escape, it was her. No one else.

"What if we make it to the finale together?" Chloe asked, trembling as she reached her boyfriend and placing her hands on either side of him. "Surely we could both survive then, right!?"

Timothy smiled bittersweetly. He placed his hands on top of hers, and leaned forward, staring right into her eyes, and it seemed to have caused a growing blush to appear on her cheeks.

"I hope so. If we both get that far, I wanna figure something out. Maybe there is a chance that we could both survive."

Chloe dropped her head downwards, her glassy eyes staring at Timothy's hands. "I love you." She whispered with nothing but pure genuineness in her voice.

Timothy lifted his hand from off her hands and placed it delicately on her cheek. "I love you, too."

Chloe pulled her head away, spinning herself around as she placed her hands on her mouth, letting her eyes close tight.

"Do you mean that?" She asked, her lips tugging up in happiness. While he had said those three words to her before, this seemed to be the first time that it felt real to her.

"Of course I do." Timothy smiled. "More than anything." He made an attempt to reach out for her hands, but it proved to have no purpose.

Chloe smiled to herself. She never felt loved before. Not by someone who meant it. She had been adopted when she had just been born, and she never really felt like her parents had loved her. Nor could she recall if they ever told her if they loved her.

Shrugging her shoulders, Chloe felt the sides of her jacket begin to slip off her shoulders, feeling it as it smoothed off her arms and onto the floor.

Timothy watched her with intrigue and with confusion within himself.

Gripping her camera strap, the conspiracy theorist pulled it from off of herself, placing it on the table beside her boyfriend's bed, and her feet reaching behind the other and slipping her shoes off, leaving her in her socks.

He followed her hands as she reached towards the bed, her eyes locked with his, and flipping the blanket off of Timothy to allow herself room with him, slipping herself into bed with him. Wrapping her arms around his waist from under the covers, she dropped her head onto his shoulder and grinned mischievously at him.

Timothy dropped his head on her shoulder, letting his arms wrap protectively around her own waist.

This was probably the most intimate they had been in their affections, they had to enjoy cuddling up to each other, and they had come to forget that they were in quite the problematic situation.

Soon, they had lost themselves in each other's eyes. For a moment, everything outside of their room was forgotten. For a moment, they felt at peace, that nothing could ever separate them again.

* * *

Contemplation. One of the key moments of everyday life. They had to wonder, though, how long could they do this for without being the next one offed?

Some of them had refused to think about that. One of them being the much more pure contestant of the final nine, and while he had some things to say, he didn't dare say it.

Mickey contemplated whether he should bring up the idea of an alliance with Erica. He had a feeling in himself that Chloe and Timothy wouldn't want them in their alliance, and then a feeling that Erica wouldn't want to ally with them. It was risky, but they were at the bottom of the chain now that Alexei was executed, and were alongside Hunter.

It was obvious that, should Hunter fail to secure immunity, he would be the next one to go. After pulling a gun on Alexei, it couldn't be any more obvious.

But with him gone, they would be at rock bottom. If they were to live, they would have to align themselves with somebody, and their best bets would have to be Chloe and Timothy.

Then again, Chloe and Timothy appeared to be the most powerful contestants thus far, and when it reached the right time, Mickey would be dropped at some point, leaving the couple in the final two.

Maybe he hadn't thought this out too well, but again, it was his own best option at surviving the competition.

Mickey had to admit that he wasn't a strategist, hell, he wasn't even the smartest one on the island, but even he could see when he was in a bad position. He may be oblivious, but he isn't an idiot.

As per usual in the morning, Erica had knocked on Mickey's door. She always did, and doing so to make sure that he was already dressed before she did so. With the fact that it was also polite, but did it really matter anymore?

"Hi." Mickey greeted as she stepped inside, shutting the door behind her before she crossed her arms and leaned against the wall.

The freerunner took to noticing that something seemed to be on Mickey's mind. Why? Perhaps Roxie's death had returned to his mind, but that wasn't very likely.

Poor girl. She had been so nice to Mickey, it must've been hard for him to vote her off. If he had voted for her at all.

The more she looked back on it, the more flaws she spotted in that execution as a whole. Sure, she hadn't gotten to know Roxie on a personal level with the fact that she was on a different team, but it doesn't make much sense. Roxie was on a different team than Jack before his death, so how could she have learned any type of body language?

And why would Jack teach her of all people?

Christ, Lane really pulled the rug from under them, didn't he? They didn't even have time to think clearly that Roxie was framed. And she certainly didn't until the culprit blackmailed her.

Fucking Emily, the sleazy bitch.

Mickey glanced about the room, unsure what to say, if he should say anything at all.

"Is something wrong?" Erica asked with concern smudged into her voice. She had never been good with comfort. Caring, yes. But not when it came down to comforting someone.

"No." Mickey lied unconvincingly and glancing off to the side before coming clean, "Yes."

Erica stepped away from the wall and approached the bed that Mickey sat on, her steps slowly growing as she approached until she slowly dropped herself down beside him.

"I...I thought that we could ask Chloe and Timothy for an alliance." He said rather quickly, almost too fast for Erica to completely comprehend what he had said. However, she did.

Erica turned away from him, letting her eyes close halfway, and putting two fingers to her mouth in thought.

For a brief moment, her mind flashed back to Dylan's head snapping backwards, and a puff of red smoke growing from the back of his head just before his body fell off with his chair.

She could never that moment. It had been so sudden. So horrid. So vivid.

While they did seem to be nice people, those two, she had talked briefly to Timothy once before and it made her sick that it could become possible that she would be a key reason that he and Chloe's own relationship were to fall apart.

Maybe now was the best time to come clean to Mickey about herself and Dylan? It would help herself move on and protect him, and also loosen Emily's grasp on her.

"I have to come clean to you about something, Mickey." Erica confessed, turning towards him while Mickey felt his brow rise in confusion.

"Ms. Erica?" He asked, fiddling with his fingers.

"Do you remember what Daisy said about Emily? The blackmail?" Erica asked, placing her hands on her thighs as she watched Mickey think back to the day previously.

He could very well remember. Daisy was quite pissed, wasn't she? He hadn't been able to completely understand what Emily had done wrong, but after thinking it over, he had to ask Erica what 'blackmail' actually meant.

"Yeah, I do." Mickey nodded, almost entirely forgetting the question he posed for her to answer, and completely oblivious as to where Erica was going with this.

"She did the same thing to me. She blackmailed me for my vote." Erica calmly revealed, much to Mickey's surprise. He opened his mouth to question what she meant, but Erica continued before he could get a word in, "She blackmailed me because I had a romantic attachment with Dylan…" Erica trailed off, but kept her calm demeanor.

Mickey stared at her with shock, he had no idea what to say. Erica was in a relationship with Dylan of all people? If this was any other situation, he wouldn't care, but considering…that just seemed to be so out of place for her.

Erica turned away and placed her hands on the side of the bed. "She wanted me as a vote and threatened to have you executed." That wasn't entirely true, but the day Lizzy had been fried, it came to be clear that Emily's goal was to blackmail her or threaten her to have Mickey killed. Clearly, it worked.

Mickey stuttered, and his face contorted into something of fear. Oh God, he was so much closer to death than he ever thought he was. It made his heart race with panic.

Erica locked eyes with Mickey. "I told myself that I wouldn't leave you behind, and I wanted to help you escape alive. That's what I plan to do."

Mickey breathed lightly. Internally, he told himself that he would be fine. That he didn't have anything to worry about. Everything was gonna work out in the end.

Yet, even with all of this running through his mind, he hadn't noticed that Erica never gave him an answer about his question, and rather left it in the air.

* * *

As time went on, it was Clifford that came to notice that no one was leaving the entire cabin at all yet, or even down to the room where they ate.

Just like nearly everyone else, Emily had her hands placed on the desk of her room. As for Irina, she sat on her bed and lying down while playing with a golden crescent moon brooch that used to belong to her former self.

"So...What's the plan, Evanescence?" Irina asked after a long period of silence, pinching the ornament between her two hands, tilting her head towards Emily, who had raised one hand to pinch the bridge of her nose.

"I'm thinking." Emily responded, curling her free hand to place on the desk. She was on the edge, and she knew it. And especially after the disaster that was yesterday. Fuck, she was screwed.

Unless...she could get the votes stacked up against someone like Mickey. He was her best bet at surviving. Chloe, Timothy, and Daisy are too close, and Hunter needs to stay in the game so that he is targeted before her, and with Erica and Irina at her side, with Jace holding an alliance with Irina, she may have the most votes.

Yes, that could work. At a small chance it could work, and maybe she could even rope Hunter into an alliance? Maybe, he really does need one after what happened yesterday.

"We need to thin the herd." Emily spins herself around, coming to face Irina as she leaned back, placing both her hands on the edge of the desk. "We need to cut Mickey out first."

Irina groaned in disappointment. "Why not Scorn and Glee?" She pouted, swinging her legs around the side of the bed to allow herself to sit up.

"No. First Mickey, then Daisy. That'll be the clear shot to getting rid of them. I'd prefer not to be smothered in the night after eliminating her alliance partner." Emily scowled at remembering what the girl scout had done to her just the last night.

"Flinty?" Irina asked, picking up her top hat from beside her, "Not who I expected they would align themselves with." She muttered under her breath, fitting the hat atop her head.

"Neither did I." Emily couldn't help but agree, lowering her head to face the floor, and a calculating gleam in her eye.

"Well, we could always just pick them off in a challenge." Irina clasped her hands together with the tiniest of smirks on her lips.

"And that means…?" Emily trailed off, looking up from her position at her alliance partner, though while she did have a bit of an idea, she had to make sure that Irina would go to such a length. Wouldn't Clifford kill her then?

"I mean that we could just...you know…" Irina placed her crescent at her neck and slowly twisted it horizontally, though not hard enough to harm herself. "Kill someone in an accidental manner."

"Clifford will kill you." Emily removed her glasses to placed her fingers just below her eyes, and slid them downwards in exasperation.

"Will he, though?" Irina tilted her chin up and placed her hands on the bed frame with a bit of a smirk.

"Yes. He will." Emily dropped her hands to her side, letting one reaching back for her glasses. "You saw what he did to Lizzy. Don't you remember what he did? He's fucking ruthless!"

"Oh, you're funny Evanescence!" Irina leaned back, placing her hands on her head as she did so and snickering to herself.

Emily glared at Irina, though she didn't care, as she placed her glasses back where they belonged. "You'll be killed. I thought you cared about living!?"

"No, I do." Irina tilted her head to the side to face back at Emily. "I'm just doing much more of what I can do to actually survive."

Emily let out a breath and turned away. "If that's the case, who are you going after?"

"I thought that was obvious, Evanescence. I'll be searching for Scorn or Glee."

The unpredictable loner tilted her head to the side, all the time keeping her focus on Irina as she sat back up.

"And you?" Irina asked, dropping her elbows on her knees, and her hands on her chin. "Who will you be targeting?"

"Me?" Emily's eyebrow rose and giving Irina a look of shock.

"You're the only one else in the room. I thought you wanted to survive?"

Emily looked away. Was she really being put into this situation? She was supposed to be the one with all the power! She was the one that had all the blackmail! Though, she had a feeling in her that made her enjoy herself. Killing those around her made her feel...joyful...but why did she feel guilty? Maybe it was only because she felt that she should feel guilty.

"Daisy. I'll go after Daisy." Emily cocked her head back while Irina leaned forward and clapping her knuckles together with a smile.

"Here we go."

* * *

There was the sound again. Echoing throughout the hallway was the sound of a light ting. It was a sound that gave off the image of someone who was lost in himself.

A coin flipped through the air before being caught once again, and then the same sound of metal ringing of a coin flying through the air before landing in the palm of his hand.

The only reason Hunter flipped the coin at all was that of the music that played in his ears, and ever-growing bags underneath his eyes, hinting that he hadn't slept at all.

No one had any idea what to think of Hunter after what had happened yesterday. After what he did, it was obvious that he had completely lost his sanity when he pulled a pistol on Alexei. What had he been thinking when he did that? When he nearly killed someone in cold blood, and while no one but Hunter knew it, why would he pull a gun on his secret alliance partner?

As he walked through the hallway he had failed to notice a door that opened just as he passed, his eyes staring completely ahead as Daisy leaned on in the doorway.

Daisy crossed her arms. "Where did you find the pistol?" She asked, and Hunter stopped. There was a pause, yet he hadn't stopped flipping the coin.

Slowly, the Kleptomaniac turned towards him in an almost robotic manner, his face with absolutely no emotion at all, his appearance so cold that it could send shivers down her spine.

"I wouldn't be able to tell you." He told to her in an almost monotone voice, the coin flying past his face with a flip.

Daisy shook her head. "You do know that you're going to be the next one to go. You'll really need some ally, and I think telling someone how you found a gun would help your case."

The metal tink of a coin continued. Hunter tilted his head to the side, catching the coin in his hand with a pause. It really was unnerving.

"If you're attempting to threaten me, it won't work." Hunter took a step back and tilted his hands to face each other, and began flipping the coin to the other hand before he quickly sent it back to the other. Without another word, Hunter turned around and walked off.

Daisy took a step away from her door and watched as Hunter began to walk downstairs. Why was Hunter acting so different all of a sudden? And the earbuds? It doesn't make sense.

It all brought her back to the day they had made an attempt to escape. The first time Hunter killed someone.

Hunter had joined them and claimed that he was being tortured by listening to the same song over and over, could that be what those earbuds were? Possibly, but why would he listen to a song, that he would now hate, again?

It just doesn't make sense. Maybe his insanity completely took over, that was really something that was possible. Or maybe he just lost all sense of caring. He could really become something of a threat, and maybe she would have to put her hatred for Emily to the side and get Chloe and Timothy to vote off Hunter at the next chance they got.

Daisy turned away with the feeling that someone was looking at her. The feeling was proved to be correct when she spotted Jace standing some five feet away with his arms crossed, his eyes flickering back and forth between Hunter and her.

"Odd." He said, more to himself than anything else.

"Is there something you want?" Daisy asked with an irritated look to her as her eyes narrowed in Jace's direction.

Glancing back at the girl scout, the shadow nodded slowly. "There is. And looking back on how well yesterday went for a certain someone, I wanted to propose something."

Daisy crossed her arms and bent her knee a bit. "And what would that be?"

"An alliance. Just between you and me, and only temporary enough to get Emily and Irina out of here. If what you said about Emily is true, then I wanna get her out of here before she pulls me in for some kind of blackmail." While his wording wasn't exactly smooth, especially with that last bit, Daisy glanced off to the side.

"Maybe. But what about the problem with Hunter?" Daisy said aloud to herself, tapping her foot.

"Please. That guy is more likely to throw himself off a cliff than to survive another execution, so really is just a win-win, isn't it?"

Daisy rose an eyebrow. His analogy didn't make much sense, but if he was willing to help her get rid of Emily after being a pain in the ass specifically towards Timothy and Chloe, then she was more than happy to send her to her own demise.

"Fine. You have a deal." Daisy shrugged and Jace stuck out his hand, only to be ignored when Daisy spun around and began to walk off in the other direction.

Jace was shady, but he was by far the most innocent of the trio of bastards, however, that didn't mean she shouldn't keep a close eye on him because who knows how many tricks he may have up his sleeve.

Jace crossed one arm in front of his chest and put his palm to his mouth. So far, everything was in working order. This was about the time he had to drop Irina, and hopefully he could gain enough votes to send her off.

Still, he was going to have to be careful in what he was going to say and not say. Maybe he could split the votes against everyone and have himself, Daisy, and possibly Hunter vote off Irina. That could be his best bet.

The screech of an intercom interrupted the flow of his thoughts. "All contestants to the breakfast room, all contestants."

Jace closed his eyes and dropped his arms to his sides before starting to walk downstairs and join Daisy and Hunter. These next few days were going to be a bit perilous.

Taking a step forward, he suddenly felt a brief piercing pain in his neck, and, as anyone would, let his hand fly up to find the source of whatever caused him the pain.

He felt the cool metal of a very small piece, sticking from his neck. Pulling it out rather easily, he swung his arm around to his face to see whatever it was.

A tiny syringe had pierced the back of his neck.

Again, he touched the spot that the syringe touched, and, at that moment, he felt his vision darken, and his legs unable to hold up the weight of his body.

Without the ability to control himself, Jace toppled over onto the floor, his consciousness fading as soon as he hit the ground, his eyes shutting without his consent.

Little did he know that all of the other contestants had had something similar happen to them. If Clifford wasn't one sick bastard...

* * *

The rain continued to pour down, plastering the logs and skin of those contestants that lied down on the forest floor, with their hands slipping through the grass strips.

The first of the nine to wake up had been Emily, her eyes flickering open to stare at the sky of the rain, pattering against her face while caused her to wince from the unexpected action.

Sitting upwards out of confusion, she took a quick glance around at her surroundings, starting to pull herself to her feet, only to stumble from the after effects that the syringe injected into her.

Balancing herself, Emily placed her hands on her arms, looking around the forest area that she and eight other people were dropped off at.

The trees shook to the side from the wind that pushed past them, and the sky was colored the dark gray it almost always was. Unnerving, really.

From the corner of her eye, she saw someone leaning on one of the trees, and as her hearing returned, she heard the ringing of a coin flipping through the air.

"Hunter?" Emily asked, shutting her eyes to make sure who it was, letting her eyes adjust to the person that stood perfectly still just a few feet away.

"Looks like somebody's finally up." Came a voice, yet it wasn't something of the voice of Hunter, and instead that of Clifford Lane's.

Spinning herself as best she could, she spotted Clifford walk from behind a tree and while he had one hand behind his back and his other with a hand held up to his chest and keeping his thumb between his fingers.

"As for the rest of them…" Clifford dropped one of his hands down to his coat pocket and produced that trusty Ruger SR1911 that he always seemed to have on him, and, with a grin that sent chills down anyone's spines, he pointed the gun straight up at the sky and pulled the trigger.

The forest echoed with a gunshot, and then there was the sound that followed of the contestants woke up from their unconsciousness that they had been submerged into.

Jace shot up with a groan, rubbing the back of his neck from the metallic piece that had pierced his neck just a little while ago.

"What is wrong with you?" An exasperated Daisy asked as she stood up, taking in her surroundings with just a pinch of confusion.

"Do want the full list or…?" Clifford trailed off with a smirk, slipping his Ruger back into his pocket.

Daisy rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, spotting out of the corner of her eye that Mickey had started over to Erica's side, who had begun to take in her surroundings of the forest.

"I suppose I should apologize for bringing you out here so suddenly. But, that wouldn't be me, now would it?" Clifford started, watching as all of the rest of the contestants stood up and some of them joining each other, while others remained by themselves. "Anyway, today will be your most difficult challenge yet."

The sadist rubbed his jaw as he let his other hand reach down into his other pocket to let himself grip onto the same box he used to burn Alexei's body.

"Do you recall the challenge we used where your pal Hunter shot Dylan?" Clifford asked, pulling out the matchbox and opening slowly. "Of course you do!" He exclaimed, pulling a match from the box, all the while leaving the cast confused to where he was going with this, and with Erica glanced away in remembering what had happened. "So, because you hadn't actually finished that challenge, we're doing it again."

The cast glanced at each other at remembering what the challenge was that day. Then what it had led to. Some of them refused to look at Hunter, while some of them, such as Jace, could only help but glare at him for his past actions.

Clifford giggled to himself, scraping the match against the box swiftly, lighting it aflame. With that same evil smile, he glanced at the final nine. "Though, this time, the challenge will be with a twist." At those final words, he held the match out arm's length and promptly tossed it behind his back.

As soon as the match touched the ground, the soaked grass had lit to fire, and had already begun to grow even larger, crawling up the tree from behind him.

The cast, minus Hunter, all took an involuntary step back out of both surprise and fear, and even some of them hurting from the ever growing heat.

"This time, you'll be reaching the edge of the forest as the fire behind me had the chance to kill you!" Clifford announced, tossing the matchbox into the fire. "And believe me when I say that we ensured that this will kill you. Be careful where you step, we don't exactly remember where we dumped the gasoline out."

Chloe took Timothy's hand as they Lane forced them to watch the growing fire connect with the trees around them. It was too late for any of them to stop the fire at all.

With worry, the couple sent each other nervous looks and their hands squeezed tight together.

"So, I would suggest you get going before you all suffocate." Clifford smirked, folding his hands behind his back as he edged backward into the smoke that had already started to grow from behind him, and vanishing from view.

No one had any idea what to do. The fire appeared to be something that couldn't be stopped, spreading from tree to tree, and lighting the sky into an orange color.

Mickey took another step back from all the heat, his mouth open in awe. He had never seen anything like this before. That was, until he was stopped when Erica grabbed him by the hand and pulled him quickly along, turning from the other way to avoid the fire. That wouldn't be so long considering how fast it was growing.

Timothy pulled Chloe's hand away, who too hadn't any idea of where to go. With fear in his eyes, she looked back to him with the same fear in her, and willingly followed Timothy as they ran off, the fire starting to engulf the entire forest within the seconds that they hadn't known what to do.

Seeing her alliance members run off, Daisy slowly stepped backward, watching the fire, before turning into a full sprint after the couple, unaware they Emily had the same idea, if only because they were part of her forced alliance members and ever-growing inferno.

Chloe held her one free hand over her mouth as she coughed, looking back over her shoulder at Emily and Daisy's bodies staggering forward, with their hands over their mouths and coughing just like her and from all the smoke.

The branches of fire collapsed in front of them and stopping them in their tracks out of surprise. Looking off to the side, Chloe spotted a hole in the ground that she had fallen into just a few days ago.

Coughing, she pointed over at the hole and tugging on Timothy's hand. "Over there!"

Timothy followed Chloe's finger and nodded, allowing Chloe to pull him towards the hole, Emily collapsing from the ground from behind them, and Daisy stopping for a moment to lean against a tree, coughing into her hand.

They hadn't seen Emily pick up a jaggedly sharp rock as she began to stand back up.

All of their thoughts had been clouded as they slowly walked towards the crater in the ground. They couldn't entirely grasp the chaos that erupted around them, the fire causing them to cough as the smoke-filled their lungs.

Stopping at the dent in the ground, Chloe was the first of them to let themselves jump in, her feet making no contact with the ground. For the briefest of moments, Chloe had forgotten that what she was going to land on was water.

Obviously, she did when her body sank through the body of water below. With that she could barely see, the conspiracy theorist let herself float back up to the surface and coughed out some water just like she had the first time.

Above her, Timothy gave a pause in his movements to make sure that he wouldn't land on top of her. He didn't want to harm her. He could hear Daisy and Emily joining him slowly, one of them coughing as the other had an arm of their mouth.

Though, it wasn't them that made him jump into the hole so suddenly. Rather, it was the sound of crackling branches above him.

Looking up, Timothy saw branches crack off of the trees they were meant to be attached to, the flames weakening them, and then given in to by the branches sailing through the air right for him.

His eyes widening, Timothy made his move to safety when he leaped off of the edge and into the water below, touching the cool surface just as the branches rained down on top of the hole, the fiery blaze stopping both Emily and Daisy from keeping with them.

Taking a step back, Daisy let out a light yelp from the heat of the fire. She took a look up at the sky to see that the fire had conquered all around them, covering the leaves of every tree in sight.

They would have to be careful if they wanted to get out alive.

Yet, Emily hadn't thought much of getting out of the forest at all. Instead, she silently determined whether or not she should kick Daisy into the fire. It would rid herself of a thorn in the side and a threat to the entire game.

She decided that it wouldn't be the best course of action. The chances that she would survive are too high to risk, it would have to be done elsewhere, and maybe when the camera wasn't on them.

Not that she would know when they would be, more of a guess of judgment.

It was then that both of them came to notice that the fire wasn't as bad as they made it out to be. While there was smoke, they hadn't been trapped in a confined space for it to be lethal to them, rather, it was the smoke blowing in the way of the wind, towards the sky.

Illusion can really do a lot to somebody, can't it?

* * *

It very well can, actually. And while it did do the desired effect of intimidation, the nature of the claustrophobia caused a bit more than just that.

Mickey was terrified ever since the challenge began, completely and utterly terrified. While to most, it would be understandable, but the way he showed it differed from the average teenager.

Erica was a bit different, on the other hand. She remained calm and composed even in these dire situations. While some argued that she was a sociopath, they would be wrong. The only reason she kept herself so calm was her years of parkour experience. It was quite unfortunate, really.

They couldn't be any more opposite of each other. But now look at how things had turned out. She had become his protector. She was going to help him get out alive.

"Mickey." Erica spoke, looking off past some trees that she swore saw someone walk behind. She hadn't looked back at the teenage child when he had, keeping her eyes locked on that one tree. "I want you to go on towards the finish line. I'll catch up later."

Mickey glanced over at the fire. They just came from there and now the fire was growing even larger. He didn't want to argue, and nor did he want to hurt her.

Nodding, Mickey softly spoke, "O-okay." Without so much of another word, Mickey continued towards where the finish line, though sending one last look at Erica as he did so.

What was she so focused on?

Of course, Mickey didn't know. It was the smoke that caused that claustrophobic feeling, and while Erica wasn't claustrophobic, she swore she was hallucinating Dylan from behind that tree.

Erica shook her head and squeezed the bridge of her nose, what she saw wasn't real. Dylan had died, and why was this smoke causing her to hallucinate him? Did she really miss him that much?

Or maybe it was because she blamed herself for his death. After all, wasn't she part of the group that allowed Hunter in? Had she argued with allowing him in then maybe Dylan would still be alive.

That didn't make her feel any better. Even if Hunter hadn't been in the group with them, someone would've died. It was inevitable. All that would change was the person that died.

The freerunner blinked, looking back at the approaching inferno. Only now, it had practically spread to her side.

She frowned and sprinted off in the direction Mickey had gone with the fire seeming to be chasing after her.

* * *

The fire was glorious. An absolutely beautiful sight to see. Well, that's what Irina thought to herself as she walked through the forest.

Just a bit ahead of her was Jace, having failed to see her and was gently pulling away at bushes to see if he could find another idol.

While Irina had told Emily that she would be going after Chloe and Timothy, she truly had other plans. And that was with Jace. With this, she could be killing two birds with one stone. Using Jace to her advantage and having Emily taken out of the game from killing Daisy.

Oh, this game was almost too easy sometimes.

The hardest part of any of this wasn't even Nebiros' feelings about the fire at all, it was Irina's. He could feel her fear of being burned within his body and he hated it.

Maybe he was more like Irina than he thought he was?

Impossible. Irina is someone easy to manipulate once he had gotten her to trust him, he wasn't easy to manipulate. So why was it that Irina's fear of fires seeped through the cracks and into himself?

He felt the heart in his chest race at every step he took. The heat of the blaze causing sweat to roll down her skin.

It was unbearable.

Irina couldn't be attempting to regain control of her mind, could she? Step back into the light and push Nebiros into the darkness?

Those series of questions floated around Irina's head as she tailed Jace from a good distance away. But there had been one possibility she never factored in at all.

What if Nebiros and Irina were the same person? What if Nebiros was just the dark side that Irina refused to look towards. Refused until she gave in by looking for guidance by her friend. What if she only began to think that she was Nebiros when she embraced the darker side of herself?

One of many questions that would remain unanswered. Perhaps Irina had just gone insane during her early experience on the island. Something plausible, but unlikely.

The door was open for how anyone was to interpret it. Maybe Irina did have a split personality...or maybe she was still herself after all?

Irina bent down to pick up a block wood that used to be a part of a tree stump. She ignored the growing flames that had been on it and simply shaped her lips into an 'O', and blew it out.

Tossing the piece of wood to one hand from the other, Irina glanced over towards, who coughed from the amount of smoke, and dug his hand further through a bush.

All she wanted to do was have a little chat with him. Retrieve the immunity idol. Was it so difficult? It could be, but the key element was patience. She couldn't rush this, she had to wait for the right moment before confronting Jace.

How easy it would be to have stolen that idol from his room, but that would've placed a target on her back, and she certainly doesn't want that. Not yet, anyway.

So, right now, her best bet was to just sit back and watch Jace run around for another idol. If only he knew what she had in store.

* * *

The rain of ash burned the ground and it gave them a reason to rush through the burning forest, the branches and all tumbling down beside them.

What only made all of this so much worse was the tension that they felt at each other's backside. It made them feel the need to look over their shoulder at any and every second.

What made this challenge so much more difficult than it needed to be was that Daisy was stuck with Emily ever since the alliance was cut off from each other. It didn't help when she did look back at Emily, she saw her giving her a piercing glare.

"Did you have to do that, yesterday?" Emily asked with a scowl. She didn't feel the smoke affect her anymore. She began to think that it was all in her mind that it used to. Which was good. She didn't have to worry about it for now. She had one goal in mind, as it was.

"If it means for you to stop blackmailing others, then yes." Daisy argued, she made no effort to look back at her this time and instead kept walking forward.

"You put a massive target on me...don't you realize that you're the one responsible for killing me?" Emily glared into the back of her head, her hand curled around the jagged rock she had found. She felt the palm of her hand dig into the rock, and if she went any harder her blood would trickle down, and create a dotted pattern on the grass.

"That was the point." Daisy argued, stopping for a moment after another branch fell beside them. She jumped off to the side and internet kicked herself for making herself seem weak. "And when you say that you're just trying to survive, maybe you should ask some of the rest of us how we've gotten as far as we have?"

Daisy had given Emily the quickest of looks as she spun herself around, continuing further into the forest in the hopes that she was edging towards the outskirts.

Emily's grip hardened in anger, and just like how she feared, the rock began to cut into her hand, the blood trickling down and staining the jagged piece of Earth, but she didn't care.

Daisy felt discomfort in the silence of that which followed. The only sound that was was the crackling of leaves and the burning of branches. She felt that Emily's steps increased as her heart raced, the distance between them shrinking.

At last, Daisy turned to look towards her rival, only to be slashed across the cheek by the sharp end of a rock.

Out of both shock and surprise, Daisy felt her knees fail her as she fell to the ground, letting her one free hand touch the scratch on the side of her face, the blood sliding down from the wound.

Her eyes twitched from the direction of the wound and to the looming form of Emily standing above her, her own blood dripping down from her hand.

Acting on instinct, and before Emily could fight back, she raised her foot to kick at her ankle. Of course, it did good on the effect of saving herself, letting Emily collapse beside her.

They locked eyes for a moment, and Daisy promptly rolled out of the way when Emily attempted to stab her again, swinging the rock from over her shoulder to make contact.

Unfortunately for her, the only contact it made was with the grass soil.

Fortunately for Daisy, however, she took this sudden act of anger to her advantage, her hand reaching for the rock, placing her elbow on the ground to do so as her arm wrapped around Emily's hand.

Rolling back over, Daisy placed one leg on the other side of her body, twisting the rock around so that it was pointed at her right eye, slowly beginning to push down, and cracking the lens of her glasses.

Emily struggled at keeping Daisy at arm's length from her, having to use her free arm to position under Daisy's, using that as her best to stop the rock from breaking through her glasses.

They hadn't said anything since this began, and neither did they want to. This had become the survivor of the fittest within seconds, and neither one of them wanted to risk anything by talking.

Emily felt the blood of her hand dripping down into her face and it had come to worry her. She refused to let Daisy stop her, to incapacitate her. To kill her right then and there.

With not much of an idea on how to get out of this, Emily kicked her knee upwards, slamming up into Daisy's gut, and causing her to wince, her grip on the rock loosening as she felt the need to get off of the girl that attempted to end her own life.

With a small glint of hope in her eye, Emily swung her elbow around from underneath her arm, to connect her fist to Daisy's face, discombobulating her as she rolled off, clutching the side of her head out of pain.

Daisy squinted her eyes, letting her senses return to her just as Emily stood up, touching her neck from nearly being both choked and having a rock stabbed through the eye.

As soon as Daisy felt the pain begin to fade away, it shot back up through her when she felt Emily's foot connect with her stomach, causing her to emit a groan as she shut her eyes tight, only opening them to see where Emily was standing.

She felt Emily crouch down beside her, and as soon as she cocked her head to look at her, Emily had brought down her elbow against her face, bringing the rock over to where her thigh was, and scraping downwards, creating a long trail of blood drip from out of the wound and onto the grass.

Emily stood back up, glancing at the blood-stained rock, and quickly tossed it away, and glanced at the body of Daisy as the red liquid emptied out of her body, threatening to let her die of the blood loss.

The unpredictable loner took a step back, momentarily forgetting the fire growing all around them, and she quickly darted off, leaving Daisy to groan from pain, and her arms slip through the blades of grass that had been stained the color red. She felt her skin beginning to pale, but she couldn't believe that this was how her story on Earth ended.

She couldn't believe it...

* * *

Daisy hadn't been the only person that couldn't believe their situation. The police sirens were proof enough of that already.

But what really took the cake was the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee that spun around the corner of the streets of L.A.

And it was the police that was chasing him.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Corrow cursed as he shifted gears, spinning the Jeep around the corner, and glancing at the rear view mirror to see that the police had very well not lost him.

What had he done wrong? Didn't he cover his tracks well enough back at the station? Shit, this was bad.

The detective had somehow gotten so engulfed in the chase that he had forgotten that Wagner's phone was in his hand, attempting to unlock it with Wagner's fingerprint.

His eyes glanced from both the road and then back to the phone, making sure the download between his own phone and Wagner's had been going smoothly. He had to get as much information as he could to locate this island, and he was in too deep to be stopped now!

Oh, how did this happen? What stages led up to him being caught? So that the police were called on him?

He glanced back at the rear view mirror and he swore they had started to gain on him.

"Pull over!" Someone had yelled through a megaphone, and the sound of helicopter blades almost stopped him from hearing it entirely.

Corrow glanced up at the sky to see a news helicopter and broadcasting this to the world. This was so stupid. How did this happen!?

It wasn't like he had a choice of where he was going, all the roadblocks stopped him from turning onto another road.

He glanced down at the phone, and he felt it in him that the download was almost complete.

The car jumped a bit as he rolled onto the sixth street viaduct. The same place where Simon Wagner had died.

And as soon as the car had rolled onto the bridge, time seemed to have slowed down as he had come to notice that a truck was coming right at him and at full force. The man driving was pale, his body thin, and black hair that which his bangs had hung over his left eye.

Corrow cursed internally as the truck and his own rental car collided and sent himself spinning by some hundred yards, the airbag going off and hitting his face in an attempt to keep him alive.

The truck was much luckier. The dent in the front had caused it to roll back a mere couple feet from its weight, and the driver hit his head as he was jerked forward, a trail of blood flowing from the side of his forehead.

Groaning, Corrow felt his feet crunch through all of the glass, lifting his palm against his forehead as his vision returned to its normal state.

His ears rang from the collision, and, though his vision was blurry, he had noticed that the phones had finished downloading, despite both of them having massive cracks in their screens respectively.

Unplugging the phone, he turned the phone on and opened the car door. As he began to step out, he nearly felt as though he would fall over.

Keeping himself on balance, Corrow ignored his blurry vision and the police, distracted and having been taken aback from unexpected crash.

Corrow rose the phone to where the sun was, letting his vision focus back on the phone in his hand, and it was then that he discovered Wagner's text message to Clifford.

A text message regarding Chef Hatchet.

With his eyebrows raised, he moved to look further into it.

He never did, however, when a bullet passed through the phone and out through his hand, an explosion of blood splitting from the wound.

Dropping the phone, Corrow gave his hand a look of terror. A bullet had passed through his entire hand, leaving a hole in its woke.

The detective collapsed to his knees as he held his hand close to his chest from all the pain, the police behind him slowly approaching with their guns trained on him.

"You are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent." One of them had said, forcing the detective to his feet as they locked the handcuffs onto his wrists.

How did this happen?

* * *

"Goddamnit, where is that idol!?" Jace muttered to himself, flipping over a rock that stood at the edge of a short cliff. Did Lane not hide any of the three idols in the forest!? Wouldn't that be the best place on the island for one?

Jace groaned, dropping the rock as he took one last gander at his surroundings.

He had come to not care about the fire above him, though he did take a quick glance up at him just in case a branch was to come flying down at his head.

He needed all three idols. Desperately. Hell, even two of the three would do nicely, but he can't just have one of them. Whenever somebody would vote for him, that would just flush the idol out. He needs another safety net should they vote for him a second time.

That brought his mind to Chloe and Timothy. Those two could become a problem and would be much too difficult to separate. They were the closest people on the island and it didn't help that they were a couple as well.

How would he pick them off? Maybe he could save Irina for one last challenge and use Daisy to help vote for them. Yeah, that could work. If Daisy was willing to out of her rivalry with Emily, that was.

"Fancy meeting you here, Sly!"

Jace froze. Irina? Why did she always come at the worst times!? Maybe he should just kill her next. Or maybe not, she wasn't exactly a threat at the moment.

"Irina." Jace acknowledged, turning to face her, and shoving his hands into his pockets as she approached, taking in the beauty of blaze around them.

"Isn't it just beautiful?" She asked, wrapping her arm around his shoulder, much to his discomfort.

"It isn't my cup of tea." Jace shifted his gaze from Irina and to the fire around them. While he told the truth, he couldn't help but feel a bit uncomfortable with what Irina spoke of, and especially how she spoke it.

"Oh, well that's a shame." Irina frowned, dropping her arm to her side and beginning to walk away from where the cliff ledge was. Until she stopped and pointed at Jace suddenly. "By the way…" Irina trailed off, her features turning into something much more serious. "I know you have an idol."

Six words. Those six words sent chills down Jace's spine. How had she figured it out!? He was so careful! He took every precaution! But she figured it out? No, she was messing with him, he has to play dumb.

"Idol?" Jace asked, forcefully raising an eyebrow. "I never found an idol. As much as I want one." He muttered the last part under his breath, if only to make himself seem that much more innocent.

Irina sighed, shaking her head. "Jace, please. I saw it in your room. It was in the top drawer."

The shadow mentally cursed. So that's why she left dinner so early yesterday. Fuck, it should've been obvious!

"Fine, you caught me." Jace crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "What're you gonna do?"

"Well, I suppose I could tell the others to vote you off if only to flush out the idol. Then you'll be on a level playing field with the rest of us."

That is not what he wanted to hear. He certainly did not want to give up the idol this early in the game and be seen as a threat. Too risky, he has to get out alive.

"They wouldn't believe you." Jace shook his head, keeping a demeanor that he was calm, while he was afraid if what Irina could do to him. He was the one that was going to betray her, and look how things have turned out.

"It doesn't matter if they believe me." Irina took off her top hat, waving it up and down to rid all ash off of it. "It matters is that they'll vote for you, anyway. They'll be scared that I was right and that you had an idol on you. Anyone who has an idol they would want to flush out, it's how this works."

Jace dropped his head down. He stared at the soil that ash seemed to cover. Then, all of a sudden, he started to smirk. "Well, what if you get the second most votes?" He asked, looking up at the girl in front of him.

Irina raised an eyebrow as she placed the top hat back on top of her head.

"Then you'll be the one executed, wouldn't you?"

Irina puckered her lips and tapped them with her finger. "I suppose so." She looked back to Jace. "But we could just avoid this. We could avoid it by you giving me the idol." She stated it rather bluntly that Jace wasn't able to entirely understand what she meant.

"Why would I do that?" Jace asked, leaning forward with his arms crossed.

"So to keep your reputation as it is!" Irina exclaimed, running two fingers along the brim of her hat. "It isn't the best, considering, but you'd need it after I take the idol off of you." She extended her arms similar to that the way an eagle would.

Jace contemplated. On one hand, he would still have an idol on him, while on the other, Irina would have it, but he would remain under the radar until he would find that second idol.

The choice was obvious, wasn't it?

"Fuck no!" Jace scowled, crossing his arms and making no movement that his idol was still in his pocket.

Irina frowned, dropping her arms down to her side. "Well, that's unfortunate." She looked up at the fire, rolling her head on her shoulders. "Than I guess it's plan 'B'."

At a speed that one could say rivaled Clifford's, Irina had sprinted right at Jace, her hands wrapping around his collar and hoisted him just a couple inches off the ground. Reaching the edge of the cliff, she held him above all of the rocks below, Jace looking down at the sixty, seventy-foot drop.

"Come ok, Sly!" Irina sang the last part of the sentence, her grip on him intentionally beginning to loosen. "I just want the idol."

Jace's worry faded, instead letting his own hands drop down to his side. "You wouldn't kill me."

Irina tilted her head down, though still looking at him in a way that almost dared her to drop him.

"Wouldn't I?" She asked, to which Jace smugly shook his head. Irina let out a groan in response and placed him back down on the edge of the cliff, taking a few steps back.

Jace dusted himself off with a smug smirk. "I didn't think so."

Irina took another step back with a scowl, shaking her head slowly. "No, no. I did. Just now."

"Uh-huh." Jace rolled his eyes, raising his foot to take a step. Only, as soon as he did, the ground beneath him crumbled away, letting Jace's eyes widen as he fell backward and off the cliff.

"See, just now, Sly!" Irina clasped her hands together as Jace crashed into the rocks below, effectively breaking his back and causing a trail of blood as he cracked his head against the stone.

At first, nothing moved. Until Jace's body began to slide further along the rocks, a pattern of blood following with him. His eyes were open wide out of shock. He hadn't been able to register what had happened in the last moments of his life.

Irina peeked over the side of the cliff with a grin. The sight of Jace's body splattered all over the rocks made her grin turn into a full-blown smile.

"Sweet dreams, Sly."

* * *

Her hands slipped through the blades of bloodied grass. The fire above her threatened to come down and crush her at every moment.

She was so close to dying. Too close.

Using as much strength as she could muster, Daisy had crawled a good fifty feet away from where Emily left her, her hands digging into the soil as she went.

She had made sure the large cut in her thigh had faced upwards and towards the sky. She couldn't risk it getting infected or, hell, even getting any dirt in it.

Groaning, the girl scout propped herself up on a tree and ripped a loose vine covered in leaves, one of the only ones in the area that was either long enough for what she needed to do or wasn't on fire.

Daisy winced as she placed the vine underneath her leg, moving it delicately up her leg, her skin pale from all the blood loss.

She took a shallow breath as the vine reached the area of where the large cut was, and, ignoring the blood that soaked her pants, looped the vine around her thigh.

Daisy sucked in a harsh breath, feeling the piece of nature touch her open wound. God, it hurt!

Slowly, she positioned the leaves at where the cut was, and using the end of the vine, began to tie it together into a knot.

That wasn't quite so hard yet, though. The hardest part came next.

Gripping both ends of the vine, she began to pull, tightening the self-made bandage around herself.

"Fuck!" Daisy hissed out of pain, tightening it as well as she could.

Almost as soon as she had, she fell back on her hands, breathing shakily. As long as it stopped the bleeding, she didn't care about the dangers of what she was doing. When she got back to camp she would need to have an actual bandage wrapped around her leg.

Her eyes reflected the fire above her. Emily is so fucked. She is so gone tonight.

The girl scout slowly began to stand up, making sure that she put more strain on her good leg rather than her injured one.

With that in mind, she slowly began to limp in the direction she believed was the finish line.

* * *

The crackling of fire began to shrink. With not as much wood to feed on, it appeared that the rain had started to put the fire out.

It was a start, though it wouldn't be enough to stop it. Not yet, anyway. Some of them had to hope if Clifford was even going to put it out when the challenge did end.

Despite that, Chloe and Timothy couldn't be much happier when they emerged from the forest, coughing from all the smoke.

"We made it!" Timothy smiled, seeing Clifford with one hand behind his back as his other held an umbrella over his head.

Chloe smiled at Timothy and pulled him into a hug. After what had happened today, they could hardly believe that they were still alive. They were still together. The both of them.

"Aren't you two cute." Clifford smirked, spinning the umbrella in his hand. "And while you are here, you weren't the first ones here."

The couple didn't care about not being the first ones there, though they did when they saw the state Daisy was in as Clifford stepped aside. She looked awful. A scratch on her cheek, a vine wrapped around her thigh, and her skin pale.

They had been taken aback when they saw what she looked like.

"What happened?" Timothy gaped, his eyes wandering from the scratch and down to the bandage.

"Emily. Emily happened." Daisy replied exasperated, though she hissed the name with venom. Chloe and Timothy glanced at each other. Maybe they were wrong about Emily after all. Maybe she was who Daisy described her to be.

"Anyway," Clifford cut in, flipping an air horn in his hands. He paused and then blared the noise throughout the island. "The challenge is over."

* * *

"Well...that was bad." Chloe said once the rest of the cast had reached the cabin to eat dinner. Well, all of them except Daisy, who had have an actual bandage used around her leg, as well as Jace, who probably had a similar problem.

Timothy took his girlfriend's hand from underneath the table. "We'll be okay. Besides, as much as I hate to say it...there are much bigger threats right now." His eyes had been directed specifically towards Hunter, who sat at the table but didn't take a single bite of his food.

Chloe sighed. "We're so close to the end but I'm still so worried." She placed her head in her hands. "Don't we have a target on us? I don't want us to be split apart."

Timothy squeezed her hand reassuringly. "We won't be. I promise you that we won't be."

From across the room, Irina and Emily sat side by side, both of them talking only quietly enough so that only the both of them could hear each other.

"We need to vote out Mickey." Emily placed her hand on the table while the other ran over the side of her glasses.

"Youth isn't a threat. He could go at any time." Irina shook her head. "I suggest we aim for Gutsy. You've wanted her gone long enough, it's time we act on that. Besides, she doesn't feel the threat of blackmail anymore."

Emily considered for a moment. "No, I still want Mickey gone first. With him gone, we will weaken Erica and then bring her back to our side. We could have the majority vote."

Irina removed her hat, tossing it against the table. "Perhaps." Then she shrugged. "If you feel that we should vote for Youth, then I won't stop you."

Emily narrowed her eyes in suspicion, yet made sure she wouldn't say anything. The voice of Clifford had told them to go to the elimination cabin and they all slowly began outside for the ceremony.

* * *

"Well, well, I hope you all had fun tonight!" Clifford smirked as he paced back and forth in front of the cast, holding the marshmallow platter in his hand.

"Loads." Emily remarked with the roll of her eyes, noticing the death glare that Daisy was sending her.

"Where's Jace?" Timothy noticed, looking around after counting that there was only eight of them in the cabin.

"I was getting to that." Clifford snapped his fingers, allowing Brendan to wheel in a trolley with a tarp over the suspiciously shaped body underneath. "Our friend, Jace, hadn't been able to survive the challenge."

Brendan pulled the tarp off, revealing a burned body that once belonged to Jace.

"He was killed by some of the falling branches. How inconvenient." Clifford lied through his teeth, though all of them but one could tell.

Emily shot Irina a suspicious look. Chloe and Timothy were still alive, and with the fact that Jace was her alliance partner, it was very likely that she was the one who killed him. Curious...did Clifford know that?

"Regardless, we still have an execution to deliver." Clifford spun the marshmallow tray on his fingers, using his one free hand to flick each marshmallow to the contestant he called.

"Chloe."

"Timothy."

The couple caught their marshmallows with a smile, both of their hands interlocked with each other's, and smiling knowing that they were both safe.

"Hunter."

Hunter caught his marshmallow almost robotically and without saying a single word.

"Erica."

The freerunner eyed the marshmallow as it flew past her head.

"Daisy."

Like Erica before her, Daisy ignored the marshmallow, letting it bounce off her shoulder and onto the floor.

"Emily."

The loner caught her marshmallow, sending a sideways glance to the peeved Daisy. Little did she know it, however, she hadn't voted for her. Not this time.

"Irina, Mickey, one of you have spent your last days on Earth here today. And, unfortunately, for one of you, that person is…"

Mickey brought his fingers to his lips while Irina bent forward and smiling at the marshmallow.

"Irina."

The last marshmallow landed in Mickey's lap, and he almost fainted from the immense amount of relief that he felt.

"No, no, no, Avenue, you've got it all wrong!" Irina stood up, reaching into her pocket to produce the idol that she had stolen from Jace's corpse.

The only problem was that she didn't have it.

Blinking in confusion, Irina checked her other pocket but drawing a blank there as well.

"Cat got your tongue, Irina?" Clifford asked with a smirk, dropping the platter and leaning on his umbrella.

Irina looked over her shoulder at the couch, her eyes frantically scanning for the idol. They landed on Emily, who had the tiniest of smirks.

"Oh, you crafty bitch, Evanescence." Irina took an involuntary step back, allowing her arms to be pinned behind her back by Brendan, and then being escorted outside, where her execution awaited.

"Avenue, please, I have an idol. Perhaps you'd allow me to check my room, huh?" Irina asked from over her shoulder as he and the cast joined them.

"Sorry, Irina. But you know the rules. We all do."

Irina frowned as Brendan tied her around a large branch, and began spilling gasoline on the branches beneath her.

"You're going to burn her to death?" Chloe cried, watching as the gasoline was poured on all of the branches, and Brendan warned for then to take a step back.

"I thought that was obvious, Chloe." Clifford glanced back at her, causing her to shrink into her sweater.

Chloe wanted Irina to get what she deserved, but not like this...not like this…

"You're sick." Daisy scowled, and then wincing after putting too much pressure on her injured leg.

Lane shrugged as Brendan circled around the branches, and then tossed a match in similarly to how Clifford had done earlier that day.

"Avenue, surely we could work something out!?" Nebiros, for the first time, found himself begging.

"Sorry, Irina! The votes have spoken!" Clifford smirked, folding one hand behind his back as the fire began to climb up the one large branch she had been tied to, and beginning to burn her legs.

For the first time, it was Nebiros who felt fear. He screamed in pure agony as the fire traveled further up the branch, and consuming the entire body of Irina.

Most of the final seven had to turn away as Irina's skin was burned off of her body, and she screamed in nothing but absolute pain. However, Emily hadn't, her glasses reflecting the fire that Irina burned in, and her hand in her pocket, feeling every indent of the wooden idol.

Some of them had to think that her voice would become sore from all the screaming before she had died, but then they would be wrong. She did finally give in, and her body fell forward, her head limp, and the fire eating away at what was left.

Turning away from the fire that grew over Irina's body, Clifford began to make his way down the gravel path, the tiny rocks shifting beneath his feet as he held the umbrella high above his head.

"Well, that's the end of today's glorious episode. We're down two, and now seven remain. You do have to wonder who the next to go is going to be, but we'll find out together on the next episode of Total Drama Zenith."


	15. Cracking the Mask

**AN: Yay, just got this out for Thanksgiving! Or if you're living literally anywhere else in the world, happy Thursday! I had some trouble with inspiration with parts of this chapter, so if some parts come across as more choppy than others, that's probably why. By the way, I've been entertaining the idea of a Hunger Games submit your character's type of thing, so private message me if you're interested in that.**

 **AZW330:** It was meant to be a surprise, so I'm glad I managed to pull something off. I don't really know what to say here, your review was a bit shorter than usual, but I am glad that you enjoyed the chapter.

 **ShadowJcreed:** Yeah, Jace was a fun character to write, so it was kinda sad to see him go. Originally, it was just going to be him that went that episode, but I decided that Irina may have gotten a bit stale over time, so I limited her to a, what, four-episode arc? I don't know, but she was really fun, so I'm sad to have executed her. I don't really see Emily in a light similar to Scarlett, partially because Emily isn't as near intelligent as her. The key words between the two are that Emily is much more crafty, while Scarlett, well, not-so-much.

 **Gucci Mane LaFlare:** I'm glad you're liking Emily, Timothy, and Chloe! Corrow's part in this chapter isn't as long as it usually is, but it is building up to something major, so, look forward to that.

 **WarriorAuthor1127:** Thanks! And was that a joke about how Hunter is barely a player at all? If so, nice one.

 **ThorBringsTheThunder:** Aww, I wanted to see you say 'double death' again. It has been a while, hasn't it? I enjoy keeping you guys guessing, so I am glad that Jace and Irina's deaths surprised you. Interesting guesses, let's see if you are right about that. And a Timothy and Erica finale, huh? Interesting choice from our final seven, I wonder, is that going to change, or will that be what you are sticking by to the end? Three idols, top seven, who knows what is going to happen. If you check my profile, you can see that we have quite a few episodes left, so they can all be used sooner or later.

* * *

Cracking the Mask

Despair filled the air of Paspinêw Island. Two more people were dead. How could anyone celebrate making the final seven of this competition? Twenty-four people entered this game, and only one of them will ever come out.

None of them could imagine the pain they would go through when there was only two of them left.

But does it really matter anymore? Surviving? This experience will destroy any and all innocence they still had. Being forced to watch people die at the end of every day.

The thing was, they had gotten much more used to the sight of a dead body. Especially after they saw the corpse of Krystal lying on the ground, her brain shocked from the high amount of voltage she received. And then there was poor Travis. He had his head bashed in right in front of his team.

They couldn't shake those images out of their minds. No matter how much they tried. But even now…

They couldn't believe they made up the final seven.

One contestant, in particular, had laid her hands on her desk, attempting to keep herself calm. Only six more to go, she told herself. Then she would be free.

Do you know the worst part about all of this was? They don't even know why Lane is doing this. There could be so many reasons, but none of them really had a complete idea yet. Did the psychopath get off from killing teenagers?

Most likely not, actually. Clifford was asexual, he found love a waste of time. A way for society to get more money off of people's feelings for each other. But it didn't stop him from enjoying the tears of one when their partner did eventually die.

Regardless of their own death, some of them couldn't wait until Clifford was caught. He deserved to rot for eternity, and when he would eventually die, it should be slow and painful.

Does that make them bad people? No, of course not. People cheered when Hitler died, why wouldn't they when the terrorist mastermind that was Clifford Lane eventually fell into the darkness?

Maybe it shouldn't matter. Not now anyway. All they had to do now was hope for the best. To survive this horrific game that they were playing. Just a few more people needed to die. Just a little bit more…

The thought alone of death frightened Timothy and Chloe, especially. They had decided that they were in this together. They were going to get out together. So close now, they just had to pull through a little bit longer.

Maybe everything could end up okay in the end. Maybe life always does have a chance of getting better. Soon, this will be all behind them. A memory in the rear view mirror. All it would take was time. Time they had to fight for.

The game was in the final stages now, and with only seven of the twenty-four chosen competitors left alive, it could be fair to say that anything could happen now. Everyone was fighting as hard as they could to survive.

It was so close. They couldn't give in now. Not when they were this close. There was still a chance. A chance to survive this sadist's game. If you could even call it that, anymore.

Games were supposed to be fun. Games were supposed to be something that passed the time, not something that could end with a bullet lodged in someone's skull.

But it did make them wonder.

How many people had died for all of this? For what Clifford was doing? How many people weren't just teenagers playing a game to survive, and just people living their everyday life, only for it to be cut short in the matter of an instant?

Unfortunately for them, however, they hadn't a single idea that a detective was on his way to find the island. Every second counted, he knew that, but did they? The minors he was trying to save?

Who knows anymore? How could they know? After Harvey, there hadn't been a shred of hope to be seen. Not anywhere. He had been one of the last chances they had at surviving, and he failed.

Besides, what good is hope when you're so far corrupted you'll never be the same person anymore?

Now, however, the wooden dock creaked under every step Clifford took, spinning his umbrella joyfully around his head, and an evil grin on his face. The challenge he had in mind was going to be rough.

Kicking a puddle of rainwater off the wooden platform and into the ocean, Lane came to a stop at the very edge, straightening out his tie.

"On the previous episode of Total Drama Zenith, we lit the forest aflame! I am very certain people at the nature preserve won't like that very much. But who cares about a little bit of fire? Our final nine didn't, for one.

"Yesterday, our final nine battled each other through the forest, and in some cases, quite literally. After Irina convinced Emily to kill her rivals, she attempted to end the life of Daisy, and almost succeeding in that regard. However, before Daisy could die of the blood loss, she fixed up her wound and won the challenge.

"Although, before she did win, Irina managed to take an idol off of Jace...only just before letting up take a little tumble off a cliff. What a shame. Almost that same amount of shame when Irina lost that same immunity idol, and like all witches of the more ancient years, was burned at the stake!

"Now, with these changes in the game, who will fare the best? Will Daisy force herself to not choke Emily out? Or will Mickey grow a pair and ask Chloe and Timothy to an alliance? Or perhaps Chloe will be too filled with guilt to accept the offer.

"Of course, I won't spoil the surprise for our audience. You'll find out yourself at the end of the day. Now, find out on this brand new episode of Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

His eyes watched in a calculating manner, scanning over each slice that Jordan's hand made, slicing away piece by piece. Cutting away the burnt flesh of the bodies that belonged to the empty shells of Jace and Irina.

It was an interesting process to watch. The skin disappearing off each of the bodies slowly over time, large cuts where they used to belong.

Jordan slid the knife out of Irina's arm, a long piece of flesh falling to the floor as he circled around to the other side of the corpse lying on the table.

St. Clarence tilted his head upwards. He hadn't entirely understood why Clifford wanted to keep the bodies. As a trophy, perhaps? Likely, psychopaths feel the need to know of their accomplishments, so it wouldn't be all that surprising.

For a moment, his mind flashed back to his brother lying still with the cold steel of metal sticking from his neck. Following the action, he had determined he didn't care about his death, but that it opened doors to what Clifford was willing to do to his 'lackeys'.

Like himself.

All thought process vanished when a tapping he hadn't noticed came to a stop, and stopping right behind him.

He could nearly feel Lane breathing down his neck, and he could picture his stance. Arms neatly folded behind his back and that same stupid eerie smirk.

"How has Jordan been faring?" Clifford asked, moving his body from behind St. Clarence to right beside him, his eyes locked on the action that Jordan performed in question.

"Well enough." St. Clarence replied in the same tone he always did. Cold and undisturbed.

Another slice of skin ripped off of Irina's body, this one dragging with the knife up her forearm before the blade finally freed itself.

"How wonderful." Clifford smiled, leaning his head a bit closer to the tinted window. His eyes trailed Jordan's every movement, placing the knife back down on the table beside him, running his fingers over each of the other possible materials.

"I suppose so." St. Clarence indifferently replied. "Might I ask why you need to skin them?"

A meat cleaver was swung down, slicing through the base of Irina's neck, caving in and crushing any and all tissue in between.

"Because it's fun," Lane answered without looking back at the brainwasher. "I'd love to show our final seven of what they did to everyone else. Remind them that they had to make quite a number of difficult decisions to get here."

St. Clarence didn't look away as the meat cleaver was pulled out of Irina's neck, dragging a stream of blood with it as the 'intern' raised it once again.

"Maybe. But there are better ways to destroy their minds." The brainwasher noted.

The cleaver was swung down again, this time shredding through the creepy puppeteer's spinal cord, practically snapping her head off of her body.

"Yes. But there aren't as many ways to have fun. To mess with their heads." Clifford allowed himself for his smirk to grow into an evil grin. "If I wanted to break them, I would've done it already. But I want to savor it. To know that whoever of them does win will have their life ruined. Forever. Besides," he paused, pressing his fists on the window sill, "who says I wanna break their minds?"

With a grunt, Jordan pried Irina's head from her body, allowing it to fall to the floor. He gazed at the head for a moment and then grabbed it by the hair from off the floor.

"Now." Clifford clasped his hands together, turning his attention from Jordan to St. Clarence. "Why don't we discuss Hunter's little condition?"

"What's there to be said?" St. Clarence glanced with a raised eyebrow.

Jordan's blade dug into the top of Irina's skull, beginning to scrape off the skin from her head.

"He's been under our influence perhaps a little too long," Clifford replied, twisting his body so that he was completely facing St. Clarence. "Let him have his fun before we begin our next challenge."

St. Clarence raised an eyebrow, turning away from Jordan's work. "I'm sorry?" He asked.

"Let him off the leash." Clifford played with his tie. "Let him stretch his legs."

Without another word, Lane was already walking off, tapping his umbrella cane against the neat surface, a hand folded behind his back.

St. Clarence narrowed his eyes. This was quite sudden. A bit of a strange request. But did it matter? Not really, if Lane wanted to take the risk of being shot, then what did he care?

One last bang came from within the room behind him as Jordan let Irina's head drop into a bucket, her head red from all the blood.

* * *

Her hand weaved in and out of the purple highlight in her hair, her feet resting on the ground, and her mind deep in thought.

Irina was dead.

That was such a weird thing to think about. It was so sudden and came out of the blue so quickly that she could barely understand what had happened.

But she did know. She was one of the people who voted for her. But the way she went out was stuck in her mind, edged permanently aside her guilt.

Nobody deserved to die like that. Burned alive. In front of the people that had been forced to vote. If it had been up to her, nobody here would have been dead. But if Irina really needed to die, she could've just gotten a brief shot to the head.

It would've been quick. She wouldn't have felt a thing. No, instead she was tied up and burned alive, pleading with Clifford to let her live, and it was one of the hardest things you could ever watch.

Chloe shut her eyes. She wanted to try and forget the execution, but it was so difficult. The deaths were getting much more difficult to cope with, whether or not the person was good or bad.

They were all trying to survive as Emily had said. If they want to survive, some of them would have to make sacrifices that were so difficult.

She wanted to see Timothy this morning, but she didn't want him to worry about her. He did that too much already. Trying to help her get into a better swing of things.

But then, she was actually quite glad that there was a knock at her door. Because she knew exactly who it was. Who it was always going to be.

Chloe smiled at the thought of someone looking for her. In the past, she never thought that anyone would care to even ask her if she was doing alright. So to even be asked if she was simply okay warmed her heart.

"Come in." The conspiracy theorist called, and almost as soon as she finished talking, the door creaked open, Timothy stepping into the room and shutting the door behind him.

"Hey, Chloe." Timothy smiled optimistically, walking towards the bed to sit down as Chloe freed her hand from her hair, placing them on her knees.

"Hi!" Chloe smiled, leaning her head on Timothy's shoulder, moving her hands from off her knees and wrapping them around his chest.

Timothy began to play with her hair, letting her smile grow further up, her hands tightening around further to let him know she liked it.

"Is there something wrong?" The optimist asked her, running his hand through her hair. He frowned slightly when he saw that Chloe's smile faded for a moment. He remembered that he hadn't gone to his room this morning, which was out of character for her.

She hesitated to answer. She really did not want to worry him, she had done so enough already. However, if she didn't, that might worry him even more.

This was a lose-lose situation, wasn't it?

"I can't get the image out of my head," Chloe answered softly, her eyes locked on her feet. She felt Timothy's concerned eyes bore into the side of her head. "It's just…" She momentarily trailed off.

Timothy frowned as Chloe began to fiddle with her hoodie sleeve, blinking out the guilt from behind the eyes in her skull.

"I'm so weak." She mumbled, shutting her eyes as Timothy lowered his hands to wrap around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

"Stop telling yourself that." Her boyfriend whispered to her, his mind flashing back to the day Alexei died. The same day they found one of the three immunity idols. It pained him so much to see her like this, and it was all because of her mood swings.

One moment she could be so happy and friendly, and the next she could be sad and depressed. She could be playful one moment and then angry the next. It really could be just so random at times, and it broke his heart to see her that way.

It was only when she was her usual self, her friendly self, that she behaved the way he knew her most. Sharing her conspiracy theories and all.

"You keep saying that." Chloe shook her head sadly, still not looking up at her boyfriend. "But it's true. I can't even vote for someone without the guilt weighing me to the floor."

The conspiracy theorist dropped her head forward, placing the palms of her hands on her face.

"That isn't because you're weak, Chloe," Timothy started, dropping his head on her shoulder to allow him to whisper in her ear, "that's because you're human."

Chloe shut her eyes tight. She briefly remembered the promise she made to herself. The promise she made to prove Irina wrong, but so far, she was losing.

She was going to prove that she wasn't 'Scorn', as Irina called her. She was more than that. She was a person, and she was most definitely not worthless.

"Thank you, Timothy." Chloe rose her head, letting herself smile once again, a real and genuine smile. "I think I just needed to vent."

Timothy smiled so sweetly and caring at her, his thumb pushing her hair from out of her face. "You look so beautiful when you smile."

He hadn't said it in a flirtatious way, but it was obvious that that was exactly what he was doing, even winking at her to get his point across that much further.

Chloe felt the heat rise in her cheeks as her grip around him tightened. "You make me smile," she blushed, and this time she wasn't even trying to hide it, "You make me feel special."

Timothy smiled that same Timothy smile of his, and it made Chloe's heart flutter. "I think I could say the same thing to you."

"You're so cheesy." Chloe smiled, leaning her head on his chest to allow him to play with her hair some more. He smiled as she rose her hand along his back, letting it delicately make patterns with his fingers.

"So are you." The optimist replied as he began to feel a rather strange sensation along his spine. "Chloe." He whined.

The conspiracy theorist hummed in response, grinning into his chest as her fingers began to tickle him, her hands beginning to climb up his back and stopping at his neck.

She knew he was quite ticklish in specific places on his body, the most prominent area being his neck. The only reason she knew that was because she kissed him while the cuddled the previous day.

Giggling, Timothy fell onto his back, dragging Chloe down with him, trying her best to push her hands up his waist in an attempt tickle his chest.

"What did you call me?" The conspiracy theorist asked playfully as her boyfriend attempted to push her away by her shoulders, but failing and trying to protect himself from his girlfriend's attacks.

"Stop!" Timothy snickered, his voice struggling to get the words out and even form off his lips. Of course, Chloe only smiled at the person she loved, refusing to even take her hands off him until she heard what she wanted.

"No, that's not what you called me!" Chloe smirked mischievously, her hands working at tickling his ribs in an attempt to let Timothy get in a quick breath, which worked.

"I called you cheesy, stop it! Chloe!" He said it so quickly he wasn't even sure it had left his mouth. His voice was filled with giggles that it was hard to even take seriously.

Chloe removed her hands off his chest, instead placing them on either side of his waist, dropping her chest on top of his and swinging her legs up and down.

She let Timothy take a couple of breaths before she began speaking, but it was nice to know that she hadn't bothered him, seen from how he hadn't stopped smiling.

"Don't call me cheesy," Chloe smirked playfully, placing her chin on his chest so she could look up at him. Her eyes locked with his, and she saw nothing but genuine happiness in them. All sign of sorrow was gone. From both of them.

"I'll have to keep that in mind." Timothy sucked in a breath, his smile hasn't left his lips. "But…" He trailed off, leaving Chloe slightly confused as she frowned.

Lifting her head off his chest, she opened her mouth to speak, only to be abruptly cut off by her boyfriend continuing his sentence.

"Now it's your turn." He spun them around so he was on top of her, and his girlfriend's eyes full of panic at the sudden action, before her mind finally realized what was happening.

"No! Don't! Stop!" Chloe begged as the optimist began to repay the favor, causing giggles to erupt from her mouth as she attempted to push Timothy off her, similarly like he had tried to do to her.

They liked this. The love between the two of them, and they both enjoyed how the other showed it. It made them smile with glee.

One of the major problems, however, was probably that the happiness between them would soon fade. But that was only because of the situation they were in. They promised each other that they would get out together, and they have no intention of ever straying from that decision.

* * *

There wasn't really anywhere they could go to feel at peace on this island. It was always raining, the sky always grey, and anywhere inside was always a bloody image of a previously executed castmate.

It hurt their eyes, to be quite honest. The sight of the people they had gotten to know for the past month, only for them to be picked off one by one, killed in brutal ways.

Soon, that will be all but one of them.

It was the sad truth. Although, some of them refused to think that way, and one of them had been the naïve Mickey, who sat peacefully on the steps of the main cabin, drumming his hands along his pants as he hummed a childish tune to himself.

It had taken Mickey much longer than the rest of the cast to fully comprehend what Clifford had been doing to them, but once he did finally understand, the truth horrified him.

He had only ever thought that this would be the kind of thing to happen in movies he was much too scared to see, one of the 'R' rated movies, or so. And now here he was, practically in that exact position.

To be frank, it was a miracle that he made it as far as he did. If this were the usual Total Drama season, he was sure he would've been eliminated a long time ago...but that hasn't turned into the case.

And then there were a few thoughts that he didn't dare explore. But the more he refused to think about it, the more they tried to edge themselves into his mind.

Eventually, they did erupt in a flurry within his young mind, and it made Mickey uncomfortable to think about. Regarding his position in the game and the possible alliance, he wondered about from behind Erica's back.

He told his guardian about the idea, but he most certainly did not want to act without her permission or knowledge. It scared him that he could break her heart so easily, and he was scared how she'll take it.

For instance, will she feel betrayed? It was too nerve-wracking. She was his only friend here, he didn't want to lose her. She was so kind to him.

Despite being worried about how Erica would react to the secret alliance, should he do it, Mickey also feared for how much longer he would be able to get in the game without her. He needed her, but she didn't need him...she wanted to protect him.

Mickey had never thought about that, actually. Although he wasn't entirely daft, there were somethings he still didn't realize. In this case, it's the fact that Erica has been helping him along almost this entire game, and she didn't even need to.

Mickey was almost quite literally a dead man walking, so maybe it was just pity that Erica wanted to protect him. She could so easily make it so much further, but was ready to throw it all away just for him?

There was no doubt that wasn't strange. Erica had so much potential, but she was ready to take a bullet for Mickey...why? He never did anything for her, it was always the other way around.

So it must just be pity. That was the only plausible answer.

Mickey sighed at the thought of Erica. He had no idea where she was, and just that thought alone made him worry if he said something wrong...something that would've offended her.

Obviously, to most people, that wasn't the case at all. Erica was a bit more...tied up than usual, and simply couldn't shout out to gain Mickey's attention.

During her time asleep, Hunter had managed to gain the upper hand against the groggy freerunner, having clamped his hand over her mouth, and then elbowed her hard right in the side of the temple.

Nevertheless, it must've only been a couple of hours ago, judging from the position of the sun from above the grey clouds.

There had been one thing Erica hadn't taken to notice about her captor, however. And probably the most important feature of all:

The missing earbuds.

Hunter was not under St. Clarence's brainwashing at the moment, so what was he doing? Did he know what he was doing?

Erica blinked as the grogginess faded out of her and was replaced entirely by confusion. But that came to an end when Hunter pushed her back on a large boulder.

Erica made to move her arms to inspect any possible wounds but instead discovered her arms were bound and restrained to her side.

Tilting her head downwards, Erica examined her body in a much more detailed way, discovering that her legs were bound as well, and her body stuck to some kind of man-made trolley.

Blinking again, Erica heard a psychotic laugh emerge from Hunter's mouth. It was obvious he was enjoying her confusion.

But that wasn't the only thing off, for instance, Hunter's mannerisms were much different than usual. He was fiddling with a small stick, playing with it and scratching the back of his head.

Although Erica hadn't known it, Hunter had completely lost his mind since the brainwashing. Every time the music played in his ears, he lost a part of his sanity.

And now, it appeared that all of that had faded into oblivion. He was simply a shell of what he used to be.

Erica's mind flashed back to the day they took Hunter with them in the escape attempt group. He had been so scared then, and look at him now. Who the hell was this monster?

This wasn't Hunter at all.

Erica tried to talk, but found her lips failing to cooperate, instead forming mumbles and nothing if any real words.

"Oh, right. That would be helpful, wouldn't it?" Hunter twitched his head, stepping forward and placing his hand on a fabric and he had stuck across Erica's lips. With one swift movement, he pulled the tape from off her mouth, taking some skin off with it.

Erica ignored the metallic taste in her mouth, she didn't care. All she wanted to know was what this was. What was Hunter doing with her?

"What is this?" Erica spat at the ground, doing her best to expectorate the blood from her mouth, the red stream landing in a pool against the grass.

Again, Hunter scratched the side of his head with his stick. He almost looked cautious about what he wanted to say.

"I was curious, Erica." Hunter tapped the stick and began to rub his jaw. "See, I'm all out of allies, and I need one to secure my spot in the final six." His neck twitched again.

"You're asking me to an alliance." Erica gathered, narrowing her eyes. It was difficult to keep her calm demeanor around someone like this. Someone who killed Dylan and then kidnapped her.

"No, this is not an alliance." Hunter snapped almost as soon as she finished talking. "This is me providing the next person who should go." He ran a hand through his hair. "So who do you want to be executed," he rose both his hands, "Mickey or Timothy?"

Erica curled her hand into a fist and made to move it, finding a loosening in the rope that Hunter tied.

"I am not your pet." Erica kept the calm in her voice, though it was perfectly clear she was disgusted with Hunter. After everything he did, how could anyone not be furious with this monster?

Hunter ignored the statement, slamming his fist on the bark of a tree, startling the freerunner. "Mickey or Timothy, I want to vote for one of them tonight."

Erica debated even answering his question. He could be asking her who she wanted to execute, and then vote for the opposite come the execution ceremony.

You can't trust a psychopath to keep their side of the bargain. How could you? They're unpredictable, they could do anything at the flick of a wrist and it would leave you completely and utterly shocked.

Though, if she didn't, who knows what Hunter would do to her? That's a risk that no one would ever want to take, so this was all just up to chance, wasn't it?

"Timothy." The freerunner muttered, and Hunter had to lean in to hear what she had exactly said. "I promised to protect Mickey. Why would I go back on that." She hadn't said it loud enough for Hunter to hear if anything it had been more of a reminder of why she wanted Mickey to stay alive.

"So you want the threat gone." Hunter reasoned with himself, having not heard the second half of her sentence. "I'll vote for him, only if you don't vote for me. Do we have a deal?"

Erica attempted to move her arm again, once again loosening it from the bondage. "I don't seem to have much of a choice, do I?"

"Obviously!" Hunter grinned eerily, cocking his head to the side in a twitch, and playing with the stick as his eyes roamed over her body.

Erica looked uncomfortable for a moment, though she let her calm facade return. Tilting her head to the side, she examined Hunter's gaze. "Why me?"

"What a good question." The kleptomaniac tapped the edge of his stick, taking a step forward, closing the distance from between himself and Erica. "It's rather simple, really."

He leaned forward, forcing Erica to tilt her head away as he brushed his nose against her skin. She felt her heart drop to her stomach, the facade she always kept, completely cracking.

What was this?

"Because you're irresistible, Erica," Hunter whispered into her ear. "You taste delicious." He bit the edge of her ear before pulling away.

For the first time in the game, Erica felt nothing but fear fill up her normally calm countenance. What was this? This was never about the votes, was it. This was just...wrong.

"You're the perfect play-thing." Hunter finished, his stick tracing the outline of her breasts, causing a gasp to escape her lips.

The freerunner pulled her fist once again, this time so much more desperately than before. She had to get out of here. This couldn't happen...not here. Not here.

To her fortune, the rope fell away and let her arm spring free of the bandage that held her captive. Please...this couldn't happen.

Before Hunter could do anything more intimate, his hand reaching for the helm of her top, she swung her fist around to collide with the side of the kleptomaniac's head.

Letting out a cry of pain, Hunter fell to the ground and holding his head as Erica pulled the ropes from off her body. With a fearful look, she eyed Hunter's form lying in the dirt, before sprinting off towards the cabin.

She couldn't believe any of this was happening. She never thought any of this could be able to happen, even with the death, she never thought anyone would be able to go that far.

Her feet ached as she ran. Normally, she would've enjoyed a good run, but when something like this...no. No, this was fucked. So fucked. That should've never happened...

Whoever Hunter was, he was gone now. Now, he was the shell of someone who wanted to live. And in his place was a psycho that wanted to make the most of his last days on Earth.

No amount of therapy would be able to fix this. Wasn't that obvious? Even if he were to get out alive, his status would remain. Hunter was a wounded dog. A dog that needed to be put down.

* * *

It had all come so soon. But it had all come together so well. Irina's demise, and now her current possession of the immunity idol.

She had worked so hard to get to this position now. She went through hell and back just to have things swung in a way that would help her. To help her survive this game.

Emily had been satisfied with the way it ended. Like a chapter of a book that ended with an indulging conclusion.

Removing her glasses as she walked, Emily examined the cracks within the transparent item. Daisy had been quite rough with her when she very nearly brought an end to the girl scout's life.

Keep them on their toes. That's what she kept telling herself. She had to keep her enemies prepared for anything, so when the time came, all it could take was a simple lie to make the all topple like dominoes.

It was strange, really. She knew that she was a tad sadistic, finding it quite pleasurable to be the one responsible for someone else's death.

It was a sensation she had never felt before. Like a series of chills of excitement running up her spine. Maybe it was wrong, but what did she care, it's not like it matters anymore, does it?

She had to wonder, though. What would it be like to plunge a knife into someone's body? Through the chest and heart of someone, being the key responsibility of someone fading out of life.

She had never killed anyone herself, and she still wondered what it would be like. How much pleasure would she receive?

Emily knew that something was wrong with her the moment she reveled in causing Roxie's death. Jade, Eduardo, and Irina all gave her that same feeling of a tingling excitement.

Even through all of this, however, Emily told herself she knew that she should feel guilty about being the cause of someone's death, but the thing was...she didn't. She almost felt as if she couldn't feel guilty since her brother's death so long ago.

She didn't care about these people, why would she? This was a game about survival, and she was playing the game the best and only way she knew how. She wasn't going to become someone else so that she could come out alive.

The air around her was so suddenly cut through with a sharp movement that Emily hadn't had time to register, and by the time she did realize what had happened, it was too late.

She felt her body being pressed to the wall, her eyes blinking to completely understand what was happening, though it was difficult, considering her cracked glasses. But she did, and it made her stomach sink.

Though she hadn't much seen it yet, Emily assumed that she still had a bandage around her thigh, and what assisted that theory was the light limp she had, refusing to put too much weight on her leg. She didn't want to spill any more blood than she needed to.

Daisy's chest heaved, her fingers wrapped around Emily's throat while her others held her hand above her head. The loner could practically see the hatred burning in Daisy's eyes, a thirst for Emily's death.

There was a moment of silence between the two enemies. Neither of them knew what to say, and neither of them was sure if they even wanted to say anything. What were they supposed to say? What could they say?

Emily breathed, tilting her head downwards and glared, which, with both the positioning of her hair and the cracked glasses, made it all the more menacing.

Finally, Daisy broke the silence between the two, her grip tightening. "Do you know what it felt like?" She asked, sending the loner a glare of her own. "To feel the life drain out of you?"

Emily briefly glanced away for a moment. Her mind flashed back to her brother, his face implanted in her mind. For just a second, she felt guilty for her previous actions, but it all faded as soon as they were remembered.

It doesn't matter who she killed. All they were were just memories now. An empty body of flesh that no longer mattered. All that mattered was that she got out alive, no matter the cost.

She wouldn't know about the pain that Daisy felt yesterday, but it did feel so damn good to do. It made her feel free. For once, she felt comfortable in society.

"I wouldn't know," Emily answered, at last, raising her free hand atop Daisy's wrist that connected her hand to her neck. "But it was necessary."

"Necessary to kill me!?" Daisy shouted, her grip around Emily's neck tightening to the point that she swore she would lose consciousness. "In cold blood!?"

"Wouldn't you do the same to survive?" Emily choked out and in a softer tone than before, her eyes pleading with Daisy's. "You are the biggest threat," she shifted against the wall uncomfortably, "it's just instinct. That's just...human nature."

Daisy scowled. "If you're that deluded, then you might be-"

"You're deluded," Emily cut in, "to think that I'm the psychopath. To think that I'm the monster," she began an attempt to claw Daisy's fingers off her neck, "I just want to live. By your logic, then you're just as bad as I am! Aligning yourself with a couple for your own selfish needs."

"What the fuck are you-"

"To agree with Dylan's escape plan and keep it hidden away from the rest of us. And being the one who killed Marisa over Irina, trading in a teammate over someone's psychopathy."

Daisy stared at her, stumped. She brought up excellent points. She didn't want to seem as selfish as Emily was making her out to be, but she really couldn't deny it. It was true. Maybe she was as much of a monster as Emily was.

"The difference between you and I," Emily gently moved Daisy's limp hands away, "is that I know which pieces to sacrifice to ensure my own survival."

The girl scout let go of the loner, stepping away with shock, completely unable to believe what she was hearing. She hadn't thought of it like this before. How selfish had she been throughout the game?

Killing Marisa over Irina. She was suffering, and she was the reason Irina caused such an amount of pain between those both alive and dead.

The only reason she ever aligned with Chloe and Timothy was that they had a votes advantage, which meant that she was in the clear. The sadder thing wasn't that she had started to use them for her own benefit, it was that she lied. She lied to Chloe to keep them together. To keep her own voting secure.

She hadn't thought about it like this way before, but she had to admit that Emily was right. She was a selfish bitch, just like her.

Daisy pressed her back against the wall as she thought it all over. How long had she told herself that she cared about Timothy and Chloe? Did she even care about the people she was going to leave behind along with Dylan?

Emily watched Daisy tap her head against the wall opposite of her, adjusting her neck. "Daisy," she began, prompting the girl to look up to her, "did you ever wonder about what would happen to you once I was gone? What about the final three? Aren't you afraid of what Chloe and Timothy will do to you? It is obvious that they want to go to the end together, so if they were given the chance to toss you under the bus, they'd take it."

Daisy glared at her rival. She was trying to get to her head. What she was saying was all a lie. She was trying to get her worried enough to vote for her own alliance partners.

She did care. They were not the same, she told herself that. That was the truth, wasn't it? Christ, she didn't know anymore.

"We are not the same." Daisy spat with venom, curling her hands into fists. She was so tempted to crash her knuckles against the loner's head.

"Are you sure?" Emily pressed, tilting her head to the side, her heart pounding in her chest, "After all, you want to kill me too." She eyed Daisy's curled grips, taking a step from the wall she had been forced onto.

"But I know that I can't change your mind," the loner breathed, beginning to walk down the hallway, "though it is something to think about."

With one final look over her shoulder, Emily started to walk off, leaving Daisy behind with something to think about. She hoped that this play was going to work. But for now, the seed of doubt was planted, and that was all she needed...for now.

The girl scout rubbed her hand against her forehead, ignoring the throbbing pain in her thigh. She worried herself with what Emily told her. It scared her how similar they truly were. But there was a difference between them, Daisy knew that she personally felt remorse for her actions, but what about Emily? It didn't seem that way.

What was she going to do now? The more detail that Emily went into, the more she saw as similarities between herself and the person she hated.

But guilt wasn't something she dwelled on for too long. Anger, however, was a much different story. Much more difficult to keep inside her, she always just seemed to let it go. Her mind flashed back to Marisa's execution, the guilt she felt after letting Irina out free.

She refused to believe that she was selfish! She wasn't! Chloe and Timothy were her friends, they had to be. She saw them as friends, not as tools.

Did she, though? She wanted to tell herself that Emily was lying, but then again, was she? She wanted to refuse to believe that she and Emily were similar in any way, they couldn't be.

Daisy's thoughts were interrupted when the loudspeakers outside crackled to life, and Lane's voice echoed through the island.

"All contestants, please report to the cabin, all contestants."

With her mind swirling, Daisy took a step back towards the stairs. Surely Emily had to be lying. It had to be a lie, but it didn't matter anymore. The seed of doubt was planted and it was only growing up from where it was.

All Emily had to do, as it was, was lower Daisy's guard enough, just enough, to have the votes swing in a way she desired. And currently, that was towards the Chloe and Timothy alliance. With Daisy by their side, they were just too powerful. They nearly had all the votes.

They had to be split up.

* * *

One by one, each of the seven contestants made a way towards the tables, knowing that they were going to be in yet another challenge to compete in. Some of the hopefulness was going to fade away, namely in Chloe and Timothy. Every morning and night they worried about the death looming over their heads.

It scared them that they could lose each other so suddenly. For a moment they would be there, alive and well, and then the next, a corpse lying on the ground with blood leaking out of them.

Sitting down at one of the ends of the table, much further down than anyone else would, their hands interlocked from under the table and with Chloe's head leaning in on Timothy's shoulder.

She enjoyed the feeling of Timothy's embrace when he held her oh, so close. He made her feel safe in his arms, she could still hardly believe that someone like him could care about her. Sometimes she thought that this was all a dream, and then wake up alone in her bed with no one to look for comfort to.

"I wish that we could just," Chloe began to whisper loud enough for Timothy to hear, a rising blush in her cheeks, "stay in our rooms...and…" she trailed off and felt a little bit awkward, "cuddle."

Glancing up at Timothy, she spot a blush of his own on himself, and she felt his hand caress the small of her back.

"I think I would like that," Timothy grinned in his usual optimistic way, and it made Chloe feel warm inside. "Do you think Clifford will care if we sleep in the same bed?"

Chloe's jaw dropped. Her expectations had risen so much further than what she thought what would happen to the relationship with anyone. Nor had she expected it to become as intimate as it has already become.

As intimate as it had become, however, she knew that neither of them were ready to go anywhere sexual, and neither of them wanted to go that way, all they wanted was just a simple relationship.

Still, she could scarcely believe that anyone loved her. It was only a little while ago she was ready to jump out of a window. Despite that, however, she still had a secret she didn't know if she wanted to share.

She had managed to keep it hidden for so long, she didn't want Timothy to see any less of her, and she had to constantly remind herself that her mind was magnifying the worst in everything. It was how she functioned. How she came up with some of the theories floating about her brain.

Right across the room sat Mickey and Erica respectively, the former was playing with a piece of wood having fallen off the table, and the latter refusing to state a word, but appearing calm and all put together.

Nonetheless, if one were able to understand what happened previously to her, they may have been able to see through her serene exterior.

The freerunner's eyes flicked over to Hunter's body as he entered the cabin, a red mark where she had hit her beforehand. But again, something was different about him. Just like the days before, he adopted an unreadable expression, and with it was the earbuds someone, or himself, had put back in.

She felt something was so different. He didn't even look at her. His movements even looked robotic, and they were so difficult to describe...he hardly looked like he was the same person from that very morning.

Erica tapped her fingers on the table unconsciously, her eyes following Hunter until he sat down at the middle of the table, the same table that Chloe and Timothy were snuggled up to each other on.

The freerunner brought her hand to her lip, looking over to Mickey as he played. She thought over the idea of an alliance with the couple sitting athwart of them, and it appeared that it could help them, especially Mickey.

"Mickey," Erica spoke softly, whose voice made said boy gaze over at the origin. "I thought about the alliance with Chloe and Timothy like you said may have been a good idea, and I've been entertaining it."

She did know it was risky, in spite of being possible allies, they were even bigger threats. They were a powerful team that was impossible to tear apart. Which was good had the circumstances been anything else.

Mickey scratched his cheek, showing his confusion by a frown pulling his lip down. It reminded her how oblivious he could be, and it made her wonder how she was doing this in the first place.

She disliked people with no common sense but now looked how this had all turned out. She was protecting a teenager with the mind of a young boy. How could she have stood for what Mickey was when she found his actions obnoxious?

Maybe it was because she saw that he was innocent, but in a way, she couldn't quite find him annoying. It was strange, so strange. She just...couldn't quite understand it herself.

If this had been anywhere else, she would feel differently. She would try to just win the game, but at that same time, find Mickey simply annoying. But when she was in a place like this, she felt sympathy for the people who had no chance to win.

She wanted him to have a chance at living through this game, just like everyone should.

Mickey began to speak but was interrupted when the two front doors were pushed open and Clifford Lane stepped through, a sadistic smile upon his lips, tapping his umbrella against the ground, echoing throughout the room as he walked, and two photos in his hand.

"Good morning, final seven!" Lane announced, reaching the other side of the room to continue the pattern of photos in the order of the executed players.

The top row included Krystal, Travis, Jerome, Ted, Jack, Jewel, Elsie, and Dylan. The second row held the photos of Kevin, Marisa, Roxie, Lizzy, Jade, Eduardo, and one they hadn't seen before.

Beside Eduardo's corpse was Alexei, sitting in the torture device the teams made for him and Hunter, and blades sticking in his chest, blood seeping out of the wounds.

It was a horrible sight to see because they were the ones who killed him. They put him into a machine to die slowly, his life fading away just as quickly as it appeared.

"In ninth place," Clifford smirked, slamming one of the two photos against the board and right beside Alexei's, was the pale corpse of Jace.

Poor boy. From the angle of the camera, it was almost impossible to tell how he had died, all that was shown was the shadow's body lying on large rocks, his eyes wide as tree branches covered him, crushed him.

Last night Clifford told them that Jace died from branches crushing him, but there was one person in the room that didn't believe him for a second.

Emily knew that Irina had something to do with Jace's death, and it was possible that she killed him. No, not that it was possible, she knew that Irina killed him. She didn't understand why.

"Jace, goodbye. You will not be missed from the rest of us," Clifford slid over to the other end of the board, placing the second photo below Kevin's was yet another corpse, but this one belonging to Irina. "And in eighth place, Irina Shishkin. It's a shame you couldn't go any further."

Irina's body was much more fucked up than Jace's. She was burnt to a crisp, lying in her own ashes. Her skin was turned to charcoal, bone poking out from her cheek. It didn't take a genius to know that she died quite painfully slow.

They couldn't, and certainly did not want to imagine it. The fire burning at the edges of her feet while the smoke clogged her lungs, screaming and begging for Clifford to let her go, to give her a second chance.

Of course, Clifford was not forgiving when it came down to the votes. Unless he saw the immunity idol, they were dead.

Most of the cast had to look away from the aftermath of Irina's body, instead settling on Clifford's eyes as he began to pace the front of the room.

He allowed for there to be a pause before he began talking, and as there was, Brendan stepped into the room with a semi-automatic rifle slung over his shoulder, and if you were to be a bit more precise, it was an AAC Honey Badger.

"Today's challenge," Clifford began, allowing everyone to look towards him, "is as simple as they come. All you have to do is just evade Mister Gardener," he gestured towards Brendan, who made no action of notice towards him.

"He's allowed to...kill us?" Mickey swallowed his voice light and speaking with a meek tone.

"Goodness, no!" Clifford smirked at the teenage child, gazing over each of the seven contestants separately. "That would ruin the fun for me. He's using rubber bullets. Still fucking painful, but not as lethal."

Daisy crossed her arms with a scowl. "So what's to stop us from retaliating on him?" She almost looked smug, but Lane's smile didn't falter.

"I suppose you could do something if the sort," Clifford admitted, Brendan, glancing over at the sadist. "But don't think that I didn't think of that. The gun is customized." The sadist pointed to a switch at the side of the rifle. "One click and Mister Gardener will be able to switch between rubber and live ammunition."

"Guns don't work like that," a smug Daisy returned. She knew she was playing with fire by even talking to Lane, but it made her feel so good to prove him wrong.

You see, while she didn't know all too much about firearms, she knew enough. Her father had brought her down to the firing range for her birthday just a few years ago, and while it had been boring for her, she did learn quite a bit about several types of weapons.

Clifford's smile faltered a small bit. "That would be correct, Daisy. But, as I said, we have this rifle customized. Maybe you'd like to see an example?"

Brendan clicked the switch and pointed the rifle at Daisy, her eyes widening as she realized what was about to happen.

It all went by so slowly. Brendan firing off a loud shot, the sound echoing through the cabin as the bullet was hurled past Daisy's face. She felt it, heard it, whiz past her face.

On instinct, Daisy touched the side of her face and looked back at the cabin wall, finding the bullet mark within the wood, splinters sticking out of where it left its mark.

She was lucky. The bullet hadn't been lethal to her, but it had cut into her skin. It grazed her, she could hardly believe it. It was an experience that shook her, shook her in a way similar to the fight she had with Emily yesterday.

Just thinking about that caused pain in her leg. Wincing, Daisy brought down her foot flat on the ground and her hands on the table, her eyes locked with Clifford's.

"I hope that we have an understanding, Daisy," Clifford smiled evilly at her, the shocked expression on her mug fueling him even more. "Now, you have a fifty-second head start, we need it to be a little bit fair, don't we?"

No response.

"So, begin!"

* * *

Adrenaline coursed through their veins as their feet slapped against the grassy floor, and it was her hair that bounced along her shoulders, panting as she kept as close to her boyfriend as close as she could.

Timothy himself wanted to keep close to Chloe. He didn't want to leave her alone unless she was the person who asked about it.

One thing he hadn't known was the pain that she felt enclosed in her gut. She wanted so bad to just tell him but worried about how he would end up reacting.

Perhaps that was going to be a risk she was going to have to take? She knew that, as much as she wanted him to remain optimistic, she had her own doubts about surviving the game at all.

She loved him so much, she didn't want to lose him. She honestly didn't know if she would be able to survive without him...because he made her feel alive. He made her feel as though she was actually worth something.

Timothy wasn't oblivious, though. He knew that something was off about Chloe, and though he reasoned with himself that it was nothing, it didn't help put his thoughts at ease.

"Are you okay, Chloe?" Timothy stopped, grabbing at Chloe's hand to stop her. It broke his heart to see her eyes glued down on the burnt dirt.

The conspiracy theorist opened her mouth to speak but closed her mouth when it was only mumbling sounds that came out. She didn't know what to say. What could she? And what was she supposed to say? The truth?

"I'm...no, I'm not okay, Timothy." She still didn't look up. Her eyes remained where they were, stuck to the floor.

Chloe's mind flickered back to that morning. She was human, just like Timothy had said she was. She had to prove Irina wrong. She was more than 'Scorn'.

"Can I be honest with you, Timothy?" She asked with a quiet voice, looking up from the ground and locking with the eyes of the person she cared so much about.

"Of course you can. You can tell me anything. You can't scare me away." Timothy offered her a light smile, shoving his hands into his pockets. It was almost like he was able to read her mind.

She stuttered for a brief period of time, fiddling with her sleeves. "Do you remember when I said that I joined the show? I said that it was because I wanted to convince people of my conspiracy theories."

Timothy nodded, so she continued. "That wasn't...the whole truth." She dropped her head dejectedly and ready for the worst. She didn't want to continue that thought. He wouldn't want to be with her anymore.

"What do you mean?" The optimist frowned, bringing his thumb up to her chin, and making it so that she looked him in the eye.

But when he did that, he saw that her tears had returned to her glassy eyes, sniffling lightly.

"I auditioned for the show because I wanted to feel alive, Timothy." Her voice was so soft, her head tearing away from his hand to look away. Why was she doing this? She shouldn't have brought this up. She should've just said that everything was fine.

The optimist failed to get a single word in when Chloe suddenly pulled up her sleeve, showing off her wrist to him, and he gasped aloud at the self-inflicted scars made on her veins.

Chloe was sobbing now, her free hand covering her eyes as the tears fell away into the dirt. Timothy wouldn't want to be with her anymore, he was wrong about her...she was weak, pathetic.

There were three long cuts on her arm, one of them slashed across the joint of her wrist, and a longer one going up her entire forearm. Finally was one last cut over two of her veins at the base of her arm.

The conspiracy theorist remembered the first time she did it, sobbing over her kitchen sink as she held a short knife over her wrist. Pressing the blade to her skin, she swiftly swiped it across her wrist, the blood spreading across both her knife, skin and even the kitchen.

'It feels so...good,' she had said, pressing her arm close to her chest as she sucked in a few last breaths. She stuck her back to the counter and slid down the wall, blood staining the floor.

With a smile, Chloe finally felt at peace, shutting her eyes as she let her life slip away. Of course, she hadn't died that day, her father managed to find her unconscious body, and quickly called in an ambulance.

Timothy took Chloe's hand, her body hunched over, the tears pooling out of her eyes. She wished so much that she could stuff that words back into her mouth.

The optimist curled Chloe's hand, pulling her sleeve back up, but that didn't stop her from whimpering, forcing her hand from Timothy's grip over her eyes.

"Y-you made me fe-el that I was worth so-something. Yo-ou made me feel a-alive," Chloe struggled through her tears, collapsing to her knees with hands on her face. "I'm so s-sorry."

"It's okay. It's okay," Timothy dropped himself in front of her, taking her hands and clutching them close to him. "You're okay. It's in the past, you're okay." He took Chloe's head and buried her head into his shoulder, letting her sobs begin to calm down.

"We all consider suicide at some point. Even I did," Timothy admitted, stroking her hair as her tears were poured down into his chest. "That's why I'm so optimistic, Chloe. I just...It helps when you focus on the bright side of life."

Chloe sniffed, wiping away her tears and looking up at Timothy. "You?" She asked, her eyes wide in disbelief, "Y-you considered suicide?"

"Nobody's perfect." Timothy smiled cheerily, moving her purple highlight with his thumb behind her ear. "But suicide isn't the answer, Chloe. It only takes the pain off you and puts it on someone else."

Chloe's eyes flickered downwards, one final tear escaping the edge of her eye. "I didn't think anyone would care if I were gone…not until now. Not until I met you."

Chloe tilted her head up at Timothy, a loving glint in her eye, holding each other as they stood up. They wrapped their arms around their waists, walking further into the burnt forest, further and further away from the starting point of the challenge. Though neither of them noticed the figure looming from behind, his hand playing with the strap of a rifle.

There was a cease in his movements for the briefest second as he slung the Badger around and then opened fire, the rubber bullets unloading.

* * *

It was a waste of time, the interrogation Corrow had to go through. He didn't need for any of that, he should be out of this city by now, and Lane should be locked behind bars.

To think that he could've made some progress on the investigation. But all that work just resulted in nothing in return, instead, it was just the loss of Wagner's phone, and even that took a lot of convincing.

"Sorry sir," a man apologized when accidentally bumping into an elder with a Scottish accent, but chuckled lightly as soon as he did.

Corrow waved him off, continuing down the front steps of the police station. He had no clue what he was going to do without the lead he was forced to give up in return and for continuing his own investigation.

And then he came face to face with him. The same man who spun his truck into his car. Simply standing at the steps of the station, his scanning the front if the building before they finally rested on Corrow.

It was quite awkward when the detective did reach the end of the stairs, and his eyes locked with the young man, his face a cold stare.

"Sorry about your truck," Corrow answered practically unapologetically. He made to move past him but stopped suddenly when the man began to talk.

"And I'm sorry about your hand," there was a notable accent to him, but difficult to distinguish between Russian or Ukrainian, but Corrow didn't care about it.

There was a pause as the detective stopped walking, slowly turning around to the pale man, clutching his bandaged hand.

Did he...shoot him? Who was this guy?

"I'm sorry?" Corrow asked with a raised eyebrow, dropping his hand back to his own side.

The man stepped to the side, slowly beginning to edge towards the cars driving past the station. "I was hired to follow you, Mister Corrow. And whether it be to get you out of trouble, though you could thank me for getting you out of there when I could."

"I don't think I understand. I don't think I caught your name, either?"

"No, you didn't. But I thought it was obvious that my employer was Clifford Lane."

Corrow was taken aback. He was nearly asking to be arrested and admitted to being one of Lane's underling.

The observer appeared to able to read his mind, reminding him, "I'm afraid no one here is going to believe you, Mister Corrow. Who would? All I am is a Slovenian immigrant, and you certainly couldn't kill me. Especially not in front of a police station."

"Wasn't planning on it." Corrow followed the observer along the sidewalk, gnashing his teeth from the anger he felt residing inside him. It bothered him that be could barely do anything to him without any proof, and it was sickening.

"I think that I'll see you soon, Mister Corrow. I hope you stay out of trouble and keep to the standards of my employer."

Without another word, the observer was already beginning to leave all of this behind, his hands in his pockets as he shifted his tie into a tighter locality.

The detective glared at the back of his head, dropping his hands down to his pockets, only feeling a piece of crumpled paper, but one that he didn't feel that was there before.

Pulling the piece from his pocket, he slowly began to unfold it to read to himself.

They all just seemed to be a series of names, but he managed to quickly put it together. They were a series of names, but when compared, they weren't American.

'Arkwright, Glencoe, Scottish Highlands' it read.

Scottish Highlands.

When you don't have any proof left over after everything he did, he didn't have anything else to lose, so why not check out the location? It was the only lead he had left.

* * *

This was a bit strange when you really thought about it. Brendan left the cabin for the forest, but he had yet to check out the graveyard, and for some reason, that was the safest place?

Mickey shakily followed Erica's every step. She insisted on staying ahead of them so that she could watch out for the person hunting them. It did seem that Erica was the only one here that could match Brendan's strength, even if he did have a gun.

She didn't want to stop for too long, whenever it was that they did. She didn't want to become a sitting duck, completely open for attack. It was too risky.

But with all of the weight on her shoulders, she couldn't get what Hunter did to her out of her mind. Or rather, what he was so close to doing. And then...acted as though nothing happened. His blank expression unnerved her. It was as if he was two different people trapped in one body.

She didn't know that was exactly the case. It wasn't anything of the such of dissociative identity disorder, but it could be considered to be something close.

That's when she stopped, blinking a few times to make sure that she wasn't hallucinating again. Instead of Dylan, however, it was Daisy lying on the ground, and knocking on the grass. For whatever reason, Hunter leaned on a grave behind her, flipping a coin.

She didn't want to see...whatever this was, but her feet more or less just forced her to move along, pushing her into the small opening, and question what exactly it was that Daisy was doing, occasionally sending Hunter a glance, but she never found him returning them.

"What're you doing?" She asked, prompting Daisy to look up from the ground, and then back down again. "I thought I heard some music or something. I wanted to check it out."

"And him?" Erica pointed at Hunter, flicking the coin from hand to hand.

"Don't know," Daisy shrugged, "just showed up after five minutes of me messing with this thing."

Erica was tempted to walk away, but something was telling her otherwise. Glancing off to her right, she watched as Mickey poked at one of the headstone one a grave. It shook, and then he cautiously pushed it over.

Daisy stopped, standing up and taking a step back when a loud cranking came from the dirt. All of them, minus Hunter, gazed at the ground with intrigue.

Suddenly, the dirt fell away, and in its place was a small box.

"What the fuck?" Daisy scratched her cheek and hopped inside, spotting a lever on one of the walls.

"Clifford's not gonna like that," Erica reminded her, still taken aback by whatever this was supposed to be. Off to the side, she saw from the corner of her eye Hunter join her in the small box.

"What's he gonna do?" Daisy asked with an eye-roll. "Kill all of us?"

She thought it over. No, Clifford wouldn't kill three people at once, and definitely not four. Daisy did have a point, and while there was a chance Lane could torture them or something, it was doubtful.

"Fine," Erica stepped inside and was quickly followed by Mickey. She wanted to protest, but it was too late when Daisy pulled the lever, shutting the door, and letting them descend.

With every growing second, the music got louder and louder until they were able to decipher the name of the song. 'We Are The Champions' by 'Queen'.

But that wasn't the strange part. The strange part was that they could hear that same very song play through Hunter's earbuds.

The doors opened, and they stepped into the dark room. What they saw was a redhead with his back to them, and the only way they saw him was through a small window.

"Have you seen him before?" Daisy asked, shifting a glance at Erica for just a second.

Whoever this man was, he couldn't see them from behind the glass, and she was thankful for that. It must've been one-way. But she still didn't understand what this place was supposed to be.

"No, I don't remember seeing him before," Erica answered Daisy's question, at last, watching as the redhead circled around the table he was standing behind.

Whatever this place was, the answer was nearing them, as focused by the pendulum that began swinging back and forth. Just by watching it mesmerized Mickey.

Seeing Mickey's look, Erica snapped him out of it by tapping his shoulder. The boy seemed to remember where they were at her touch, tilting his head back to see Hunter had a face similar to what was his.

Then she put the pieces together. The music, the pendulum, and blank expressions, Hunter was under some kind of control!

She opened her mouth to speak but was stopped so suddenly when Hunter rose his hand, pointed right at the glass, showing the same CZ-USA 85 Combat pistol. She didn't have any time to stop him when he fired, the bullet immediately shattering the glass into pieces.

The brainwasher slowly turned towards the sound of the gunshot, ignoring the pieces of glass covering the floor. Hunter stood perfectly still, slowly lowering his gun back to his side.

"Hunter, do we have intruders?" he asked, tilting his head to the side, noting light sobs that came from someone that most definitely was not Hunter. It was obvious someone was hiding below the window.

"Yes," the answer came from Hunter's lips, almost unmoving, and his eyes locked in place. The brainwasher sighed.

"Would you neutralize them, please?"

Throughout this entire conversation, Erica, Mickey, and Daisy had only been able to overhear it. They didn't dare look over the glass until those very words.

Daisy sprung up from her spot on the floor, her feet already in a dance to get to the elevator, but her journey was cut short when Hunter swung his pistol around, letting it crash into Daisy's cheek, and knocking her through the shattered window frame, her body slumped over.

Erica dodged Hunter's next blow, getting in a kick, letting him stumble back.

In spite of the fight between his guardian and, well, whoever this was, Mickey hurried over to the elevator and places his hand on the lever to move back up to ground level.

Erica sprinted past Hunter to join him but was cut short when she felt Hunter's arm wrapped around her ankle, pulling her to the floor. Mickey's heart pounded heavily as he covered her throat with his thigh, pointing his gun at her head.

"Go!" Erica cried out, just in time before Hunter whacked her in the side of the head with the butt of his pistol. Mickey bit his lip and looked away, pulling the lever to let the doors shut.

The last thing he saw before the silver doors closed was Hunter standing up, and beginning to shoot at him, all of the bullets missing by crashing into the door or the bars above him.

He was still unloading his ammo when the doors shut and took him back up to ground level, breathing so heavily. He didn't want to leave Erica behind like that, but he had to. What was he supposed to do?

The elevator reached the top, the artificial grass floor opening up, allowing him to step back out into the cold air of this place. He crossed his arms in an attempt to keep himself warm, which wasn't entirely working.

Just as soon he stepped out, the grass roof to the elevator closed back in. Mickey spun around to watch it lower back into the ground, though when he spun around, he came face to face with Brendan.

With a yell out of fright, the teenage child tossed himself backward, pressing his spine to an unspecified tombstone, his lip trembling as Brendan got closer and closer.

For a moment, there was just the sound of rain softly splattering against the grass. That was all it was. Then, a voice. "You aren't allowed to be down there."

He followed his hand as he reached down to the switch on his rifle, clicking it from rubber to lethal. His breathing hitched as Brendan sent him what could be described as an almost apologetic glance.

Mickey prepared for the worst, closing his eyes and whimpering as the so-called 'intern' put the barrel of the rifle up to his head. He could feel the cool steel pressed against his skin.

He wanted to cry.

Brendan's finger lingered over the trigger, and he began to pull it. Only, he stopped when his vision went fuzzy, and an incredible amount of pain crashed into him from his temple.

With a groan, his body toppled away and the gun fell away from his hands, instead clutching his bleeding head in confusion.

What happened?

Mickey opened his eyes ever so slowly, careful if what he was going to see was what he wanted to see. It wasn't exactly that...at all.

Emily kicked Brendan over so that he could face her, his hand dropping to his side and reaching back for the rifle. But it didn't get very far when the loner straddled his waist, a bloody piece of a tombstone in her hand.

"Clifford never did say that killing you was against the rules," Emily scowled, leaning down so that their faces were inches apart. "I've been wondering what it's like to kill someone."

Brendan squirmed underneath her, his brain too fizzled up to even think. He tried reaching for the gun one last time, but that proved to be a major mistake when Emily slammed down the rock on his wrist.

His arm retracted in pain, and his face began to contort into something of fear as if he finally realized what was going on. He hadn't had time to protect himself when Emily brought the rock down on his face, scraping his skin off and effectively breaking his nose.

Brendan coughed as she brought the rock down again, this time much harder than before, and this time denting his skull, his blood leaking onto the grass floor and his hair.

He tried to scream for help, but no sound came out. Instead, all he got was another wave of tremendous pain, his head thrown back as the piece that formerly belonged on a tombstone, was pulled off, blood dripping into the dirt.

Brendan's face was completely unrecognizable. His blond hair was messy and stained a horrific crimson, the darker color seeping from the massive dent in his head.

His light tan skin was marked with red scratches, and it matched with the missing teeth that were bashed out so very quickly. He didn't even know if his lip was still intact from all the smashes to his head.

He couldn't control his hands anymore, but both his legs and fingers twitched uncontrollably and desperately to no avail.

Emily raised the rock high above her head one last time, and Brendan could only stare helplessly. He wished the pain would just end, he couldn't bear it anymore.

Fortunately, his wish came true with a loud crack, his skull broken, and pieces of cartilage sticking to the rock Emily pulled out of his head.

However, even when he was dead, it didn't stop the loner from bringing the rock down against his head again, and again, and again. She saw from the corner of his eye Mickey holding his legs up to his chest, and his back on one of the gravestones.

At last, Emily stepped away from the person she demolished and admired her handy work. Brendan's head was completely destroyed, all that was left was a large mass of blood, tissue, and his brain matter.

Her face was splattered with his blood, but she didn't care. Dropping the rock to her side, she stared up at the sky as the rain touched her skin.

She never felt so alive.

It felt so good to bring that rock down over and over until the life of Clifford's pawn was gone forever. It was so strange, life. One moment they are there, and the next, just a memory.

Mickey sobbed into his knees after watching everything Emily did to Brendan. Did he really deserve to die like that? He didn't know, but it really did upset him.

There was a loud echo, like the sound of someone dropping an arm. Mickey looked around expectedly, and a voice rang out from all around them.

"Congratulations Emily on winning today's challenge." Mickey looked fearfully at the girl sitting across from him, now standing up and her arms limp. "For those who don't understand, the challenge wasn't just to evade him but to do what it took to fight back. The challenge is over."

* * *

The night fell quickly for some of them, the tension in the air rising as high as it was possible. Another person was going to die. Seven was going to become six, and yet another person was going to be but a memory edged into their minds.

The new guy, Jordan, locked the doors once everyone was settled in on the couches. He didn't want to pay them any mind, but he did. He almost seemed sad at what was to come. Like he wanted to stop it, but couldn't.

Clifford leaned on his umbrella with a smirk, a platter of six marshmallows in his hand. "Seven to become six. Isn't that exciting? To know that six of you are going to outlast eighteen of your dead friends, enemies, and acquaintances."

Daisy shifted uncomfortably, Erica noticing the movement but saying nothing, keeping her calm facade as best she could as Lane continued.

"Now, as for the people safe tonight, marshmallows to the following…"

"Emily."

The loner gave a slight nod, closing her eyes as the marshmallow fell to the floor. It wasn't the execution that scared her, it was the image of her brother, scratched into her mind, that frightened her.

"Daisy."

The girl scout knocked the marshmallow out of the air as it sailed towards her. She turned away to hide a guilty expression.

"Mickey."

The teenage child bit his lip and nodded his head, trying to catch his marshmallow but missing, hitting a finger and bouncing away.

"Erica."

The freerunner caught hers, biting the inside of her cheek. Taking a quick glance at the marshmallow, she let it drop to the floor.

"Timothy."

Chloe squeezed Timothy's hand as his marshmallow passes his head. He gave her a loving look and returned the gesture, Chloe's free hand dipping into her hoodie pocket.

"And, with a three to four vote, the next executed in our queue of players is...Chloe!"

The last marshmallow was tossed through the air, and Hunter's arm automatically flew up to catch it.

"Four?" Chloe asked, breathing slowly to even her heartbeat, standing up.

Timothy looked back at Daisy, who had been biting her lip, drawing blood. She voted for Chloe, he caught that right away. He was hurt.

Wobbling over to Clifford, Chloe quickly handed him her immunity idol, stepping away as her breath began to restore to normal.

A gasp escaped Daisy's lips, the others looking on in shock. Emily cursed under her breath and clenched her fists together.

"This is an immunity idol," Clifford held it up, showing it off to the players that hadn't seen it yet. "Meaning that Chloe is safe from tonight's execution."

Hunter stood up and walked towards him, Clifford pressing a button on his umbrella to unsheath a blade hiding underneath.

Timothy rushed over from his spot and embraced her in a hug. "You're okay," he whispered, softly stroking her hair as she held firmly onto him. "You're okay."

"You saved me, Timothy," she whispered into his shoulder. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

He pulled himself away from her, the two of them smiling at each other. They were safe. They couldn't believe that they found that idol, it was their only chance at getting out alive.

Suddenly, the sound of rippling flesh interrupted their thoughts, skin tearing open as blood dribbled down her leg.

Chloe frowned, looking down at her chest to find Clifford's blade sticking out of her abdomen. Timothy gasped. "No," he whispered in horror.

"Remember when I told you to kill Timothy?" Clifford's voice reached her ear, his head reaching down to speak to her. "I didn't lie. I told you that if you didn't kill him, I would kill you. I'm a man of my word."

Lane pulled the blade out, letting Chloe fall to the floor, clutching her chest as Timothy tried pressing his own hands to stop the bleeding, tears pooling from his eyes.

"No," he whispered once more, Chloe's pale skin becoming so much paler. He didn't know what to do. Her life was being taken away from him, right in front of his eyes!

"I-I don't want to die," Chloe whispered, her eyes shakingly trying to find Timothy's.

"You're not going to die," Timothy tried to reassure her, his tears spilling against the floor as Chloe began to feel herself begin to slip away.

"I'm so cold," she whispered so quietly, her bloody hands moving from her chest and to his hands. She wanted to feel him one last time. Why was life so unfair? The moment she felt something, the moment she felt like she was worth something, she was going to die.

"You'll be fine!" Timothy found himself sobbing now, her blood gushing through his hands. She did feel cold. The heat in her hands had evaporated.

Then, she said the words that horrified him most. The words that he would do anything to take back from hearing. The words that signified his love, the person he had grown to care about, was gone forever.

"Don't forget about me."

And then Chloe's body went limp, her eyes glassy, and her heart stopped. Her body shut down. Timothy held her close, crying into her chest. It was the first time he had cried in this competition. He was broken. He was nothing without her.

His mask of optimism was shattered.

"Why?" He asked, referring to Clifford as he sheathes his blade back into his umbrella. Clifford registered the words, but it had been difficult from his sobbing voice.

"I told you. It was always going to end this way," and then, without another word, Clifford stepped through the cabin front doors.

"And thus, we have an end to our couple. I wonder, who will be the next to go? Well, don't stray away, we'll be back for more Total Drama Zenith."


	16. Things I Haven't Foreseen

**An** I am so sorry for the hiatus! I honestly don't know what happened, the time just flew by! I know that isn't an excuse considering I've been absent for what? Nine months? Anyway, if you have a question about the story, please PM me, it gets harder and harder to respond to every review in one chapter. Not to say I don't like reviews, they help keep me motivated, but...yeah. Also, an announcement at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Things I Haven't Foreseen

The island was deathly silent. No wind, no rain, and no voices. Hardly anyone said a single word since the death of Chloe Gray. Since a blade was struck through her abdomen, and slowly left to die in her boyfriend's arms.

It came out of nowhere, her death. To Timothy, it felt like the light in his life had been snuffed out. He missed her so much. He didn't want to believe that she was gone.

The slow way that she died didn't just hurt Timothy, however. It hurt Daisy. There was a trust between the two. A friendship between the two. And in the end, it didn't mean anything because she was the one who voted for her. She was the one who both, directly and indirectly, sealed Chloe's fate. And knowing that she could've voted differently hurt her the most.

But that's the price to pay for getting attached.

There was something new in the air that morning. A sense of desperation from the final six. They were running out of people, of contestants and allies, and the closer to the end they got, the more twitchy some of them could, and would, eventually get. The want to get off the island, to never see Clifford Lane's face again, unless they saw a photo of his mugshot on the television screen.

It was always obvious only one player would come out alive, but before that last execution, it was like none of them actually wanted to believe it. Of course, they were just too naïve to believe that in a game like this, sacrifices would need to be made.

Right now, though, six remained, although some of them were a bit more broken than others. Hunter and Emily being two prime examples, even if the latter was just a little bit different. Different being that she nearly had nothing left to lose. As for Hunter, on the other hand. Well, his mind was in shambles, and it was unlikely it would ever be put back together again.

Or at least, put back together in the right places, anyway.

The herd was thinning, which meant that the alliances made would have to collapse. Maybe secrets would be spilled, perhaps done so to save the skin of another? With the end so close, it didn't fail to cross their minds that stakes were going to rise higher than usual. That soon some of them were gonna do whatever it took to come out on top.

Some people won't be as merciful as others.

How could so much have happened in just, Christ, how long has it been? A month and a half since twenty-four people boarded that damn plane? Why didn't that feel right? Whatever, it didn't matter anymore. It's not like time was very important on Paspinêw Island.

Oh, how wrong that was. Time was everything. And time was something Detective John Corrow didn't have. Every second counted, and he was not going to give up on these...kids so easily. He was going to save them, he had to. But right now, each and every person, they were all running out of time.

The wooden planks creaked under the boots of Clifford Lane, an umbrella lazily curled in his grip despite the lack of rain. Slowly, he crossed his legs, putting his weight easily on his left foot.

Then, finally, his lips curled up into a sadistic smirk. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Chloe was dead. Daisy has gone rogue. Who knows how Timothy has been doing since the death? Oh, but how about Erica and Mickey? Was their bond strong? That was hard to say, but they certainly liked to think so.

Oh, Erica. So optimistic prior to joining. Was that snuffed out yet? Lane couldn't determine, but something he did know was that she'd managed an excellent poker face when she found out what this game truly was. When she understood the rules and risks. And to think she was an adrenaline junkie.

Clifford wanted to laugh at that thought. An adrenaline junkie who, so far, has been anything but. A shame, that.

Mickey was a different scenario together. A near opposite of Erica, Mickey was so, so innocent when the show first began, and now that was ruined. From time to time, it was quite hard to believe that the boy was seventeen. He didn't act that way, more so like he was ten or eleven. It was a surprise he made it as far as he did thus far, though that luck was bound to run out with cutthroat Emily, turncoat Daisy, wildcard Timothy, brainwashed Hunter, and cool Erica among the final six participants.

The sadist standing at the edge of the dock slowly uncrossed his legs, and deftly enfolded his one free hand behind his back, his dark eyes piercing the camera with a malevolent gaze.

"On the previous episode of Total Drama Zenith, our final seven were hunted down by our own, dear Brendan Gardener. Although he didn't manage to harm anyone in specific, he did corner sweet, innocent Mickey. Or, well, perhaps a better word would be 'tainted'. However, before he could have any harm done, Emily performed the only action that needed to be done in order to protect herself, to exterminate Brendan herself, and thus earning herself immunity.

"But, it wasn't all smooth sailing. Erica and Daisy discovered Hunter's rewiring, and after attempting to escape, were neutralized appropriately. With this newfound knowledge, it appeared the majority vote would've been the mole, but it seemed to change in Emily's favor after using both blackmail and convincing to swing the vote towards the most powerful alliance.

"With the majority votes heading Chloe's way, it appeared that she would be the next heading to the land of the dead, though that was put on hold when she produced her immunity idol. Unfortunately for her, it was null and void due to the deal she broke in episode eight," Lane broke out in a large grin, "Oh, and it was just after her poor sob story!

"Now, how will this latest execution affect the game? How will Daisy behave towards Emily after taking an active part in the execution? And how will dear Timothy fare after his beloved was offed?

"I have a few ideas, but it wouldn't be fair if I gave it all away, would it? No, best you watch and find out what happens next, and who goes next on the brand new episode of Total Drama Zenith!"

* * *

It felt like the whole world suddenly stopped. He couldn't talk to her anymore. He couldn't touch her anymore. Hold her, comfort her, kiss her, he couldn't do any of it anymore. She was gone now, and he could hardly believe that. He didn't want to believe it, but what good was that?

Chloe was gone forever.

Timothy stayed up virtually all night, going between two exact phases: disbelief and something beyond depression. No. It was more than just sadness. He really cared for Chloe in the short span they knew each other. He grew to not only care but love her, in such a quick amount of time.

Tears slipped down his face, landing on the screen of the same camera Chloe owned. His finger lingered over the button to change the image. This was the first time he was truly sad for a long time. Unfortunately, that well-defined mask he created, the mask that turned into more than a mask, had been cracked. No, it was more than just cracked, it was in pieces!

A hiccup came through his lips without his permission, another tear falling from his face to the camera. He wanted to hate Daisy for what she did, voting for Chloe, causing her execution.

But he couldn't.

No matter how much he tried, he couldn't bring himself to hate her. All be could do was solely hate Clifford for what he was doing to them. Survival was human nature, after all, and a person like Emily and Daisy were both running on their will to survive. The true, big difference between the two of them was that one of them was that Emily was much more aggressive in her approach throughout the game.

Game? Whatever they were in could hardly be called a game.

A picture of him and Chloe smiling despite the situation. A picture of Chloe pecking Timothy on the cheek. A picture of Timothy trying to tie together one of Chloe's theories with pictures taken and printed prior to coming to the island. A picture of Chloe glaring at the camera having just been woken up. Four pictures of different sections of the forest. A picture of the supposed alien ship Timothy created. A picture of Timothy eating breakfast and trying to chat with his teammates, unaware of the photo being taken, during the morning of the second challenge.

Timothy smiled watery at that last one. Chloe liked him even back then when she barely knew him.

Sniffling, the optimist placed the camera that formerly belonged to Chloe on the nightstand. As soon as the action was completed, he let his head fall into his hands, his sobs coming through at a much faster rate.

"She's not dead, she can't be," he murmured to himself repeatedly.

One memory, in particular, floated to the front of his mind. It tore at his heart inside. An hour just a little bit before the conspiracy theorist's execution where both he and Chloe lie together, hands interlocked, and his head leaning on her chest.

"I feel like something bad is going to happen," Chloe said quietly, her thumb rubbing the back of Timothy's palm. She had been so amazed he didn't push her away after sharing her secret with him.

Timothy's eyes drifted upward, searching for Chloe's, but her's remained looking away. Smiling sadly, he responded with, "Well, I don't think our situation is perfect."

"No," she shook her head, firmly avoiding his eyes, "I mean...I don't know…I'm worried something's gonna happen to…" she trailed off, biting her lip so hard it almost bled.

The optimist reached behind her and placed his hand on her back, the edge of his lip quirking briefly in mirth at the sudden hitch in her breath. "Us?" he supplied?

Never did Timothy think that a period of silence could be so loud. Concerned, he started to speak when he heard her meekly answer, "Yes."

A heavy frown slammed into Timothy at full force. Dropping his hand from her back, he brought it gently to her chin, turning her slowly to look at him, yet also giving her plenty of freedom to resist. "Hey," he soothed softly, the fuzziness in his voice being enough for her to look at him. "I made a promise, love," he whispered, adoring the way her face lit up at his little endearment, "I promised that I wouldn't leave you."

Chloe beamed, her free hand drifting to his other hand. Her eyes sparkled with so much love in them the optimist thought his heart would burst. "You promise?"

"Obviously," Timothy smiled playfully, watching as Chloe tried and failed to suppress her smile, rolling her eyes.

Abruptly, a devious smile crossed the short girl's mind, her grin turning sly. Before she lost the boldness that was flowing through her, she swiftly pushed on her boyfriend's chest, forcing him back onto the bed, his face contorting into that of surprise and confusion.

Rapidly, Chloe shifted her position, flinging one leg over Timothy's torso, and keeping both arms by his side. "I seem to recall you torturing me this morning," she smiled cheekily.

In all honesty, Timothy couldn't really recall the rest, other than the uncontrollable giggles that fell from his lips as his girlfriend attacked him.

The optimist felt his heart shatter all over again. He couldn't keep his promise. They were forced apart without choice, and Chloe was gone. He'll remember that moment for the rest of his life, Chloe's eyes, full of life, looking at him as she spoke her last words, words that would forever haunt him, just before those eyes turned glassy and empty.

'Don't forget about me'.

* * *

The reality of the vote hit Daisy like a truck. The realization that someone she considered a friend, a person that considered her a friend, was...dead.

Despite the horrible action she took in, the corner of her mouth curled up in a sad smile. Self-hatred, the girl scout found, was cliché. She wanted to kick and scream at Emily for making a comparison, saying a string of sentences that brought Chloe down to her knees.

Emily Sturges, Daisy found herself conceding, was similar to herself. One half of the same coin. They both wanted to live, but Emily was much more approachable in her run here. Did that make sense? No, probably not.

That was the strangest of it all, actually. Despite the emotion that went beyond the hatred that she undoubtedly felt towards the unpredictable loner, she also had just a small bit of respect for her.

Obviously, she'd never say that out loud, but it didn't mean she couldn't think it. She could still feel guilty for taking Timothy's girlfriend from him, but that didn't mean that, if given the opportunity, considering the circumstances, she'd still vote for her all over again. She was simply too powerful, so she needed to go.

Christ, Emily's thinking was leaking into her brain.

"Maybe we could've been best friends in another life," Daisy mused, a weak smile playing at her lips. Heaving in a deep breath, she leaned back against the hallway wall.

She'd been waiting here for the last ten minutes, hoping for two things: that Timothy didn't come out of his room just yet, and that Emily would. They needed to talk.

God, facing Timothy was going to be hard when the time inevitably came. That was going to happen regardless. Confrontation. Either between her and Timothy, or her and Chloe, and something in her veins told her that if she went that route with Chloe, things wouldn't end out so pretty. For either of them.

Now, however, with...the Chloe and Timothy alliance shattered, there was one other large threat. Erica and Mickey. It was obvious Emily wanted Mickey gone for days now, but compared to the other two, Mickey was hardly the biggest threat between the two. The question was, how on Earth were Emily and Daisy going to get Erica eliminated - no, executed.

Yawning, the girl scout glanced down the hall when she heard a door click shut. Emily had her eyes on Daisy, an eyebrow raised.

An image of Chloe's face flashed through Daisy's mind, and she inhaled sharply. They killed Chloe. Conspired against her and Timothy, and then betrayed the trust they built.

Grinding her teeth, Daisy forced the image of Timothy sobbing into his hands away, stepping away from the wall and staring down Emily as she approached.

"You're a psychopath, you know that," Daisy growled when the unpredictable loner came to a stop just a few steps from her.

"Sociopath, actually," Emily corrected, mirroring the words she once spoke to Irina back down at the underground tunnel.

Daisy's eyes narrowed.

"I see that they're no longer useful to you," Emily abruptly changed topics, looking back over her shoulder at the room that once belonged to Chloe.

"What?" the girl scout began to say, trailing off from shock.

"Maybe we are one of the same, after all," Emily pressed, stepping back to the wall to face her archenemy. "I mean, you listened to me, of all people!" A smile began to spread, her eyes penetrating Daisy's soul.

"We are not the same," the girl scout spat with venom lacing the outline of her lips, "you're a manipulator, a blackmailer, a liar, shall I go on?"

"No, I think I get your point," the loner scowled, "but I think we can agree that you are two of those things, as well."

"Fuck. You. Don't act like you know me. You tricked me into voting for one of my friends-"

Emily's glare was more terrifying than usual, Daisy found. Maybe that was because she only recently found out what she was capable of. That the girl standing ahead of her was a murderer.

"Don't project your guilt onto me! You willingly voted for Chloe, remember? I didn't trick you into anything. Can I remind you that we're in a dog eat dog world right now, so that if the time came down to it, Chloe would vote for you."

It took all of Daisy's willpower to not swing her fist around and break Emily's nose right at that very moment. She didn't want to agree with the valid points Emily brought up, she knew she was right. If Daisy wanted to live, Chloe still would've had to die, and that hurt so much. She genuinely saw the conspiracy theorist as a friend, so when she saw Clifford's blade enter through her back, she was utterly speechless. In complete disbelief.

Regardless of the perfect world that Daisy envisioned, of her, Chloe, and Timothy making it out alive, the seed of doubt Emily planted ruined that vision. Let her know that, realistically, all three of them would never survive.

What was worse was that in spite of their friendship that slowly developed, she still needed their votes, and so she did her best to keep them together. She used the relationship between friends in her advantage because, in all honesty, Daisy truly didn't know she cared so much about Timothy and Chloe until the second she voted for her.

So, in a weird sense, Daisy was both glad and mortified that she allowed Emily to manipulate her. But now, she was going to do whatever she could to set things right again between her and Timothy, because now, she really hoped that it would be him and her in the finale together.

So that brought up another question. Who was the monster here? Daisy or Emily?

Emily took a step back from the girl opposite her, ripping her sight off and walking back to her room. She didn't care if it looked strange, she wanted to go back. Maybe when Clifford called them all back out then she'll be on her way back out.

Upon shutting her door, Emily split off from her path to her bed and right to her room's bathroom. Her walk was slow, though her mind was racing. What would he make of her now? The way she felt of killing people? The way she felt when she was the one who directly killed a human being?

What her brother would think of her doesn't matter anymore. He's dead, anyway. Truthfully, she felt part of herself should feel sorry for what she did to Chloe, only she didn't.

Somehow she felt the opposite feelings towards her sister. She thought she should hate her sister for putting her into this mess in the first place, but it isn't like she knew that.

Dropping her hands onto the counter, Emily threw her glasses across the counter, letting her bangs all over her face as she stared at herself in the mirror, locking eyes with herself.

And then she screamed loud enough to wake up the players who were still asleep. It felt good to let herself go sometimes, and this was no exception. However, it wasn't hate she felt, none whatsoever, actually. No guilt, either. It was something she couldn't quite decipher. Like the world was spinning and she was scrambling for traction.

Those feelings don't matter now. Now there was power, and that made her feel wonderful. How it felt when she brought down that rock on Brendan's face. It felt glorious, the rush of chills she normally felt run down her spine when she was responsible for an execution. This time was euphoria, orgasmic. It was wrong. It was so fucked up, she knew that, that she was sadistic, although she didn't know she was this sadistic.

Still, she wasn't losing any sleep over anyone. They had to die in order for her to survive, and she was going to get off this godforsaken island one way or another.

"Keep them on their toes," Emily told herself again as if reminding herself what she had to do. She knew she'd been lying to herself. She did love the feeling of being responsible for someone's death, that much was obvious, but it had become something strange that she wasn't noticing the guilt fading.

* * *

The sweat on her brow was thick now, dripping off her forehead at every toss and turn in her bed, sticking to the sheets, her legs kicking out at the blanket that covered her.

Erica's breathing picked up, her eyes shut firmly with her hands bound in a tight, vice-like grip in the sheets. This was the worst one yet, and that was saying something. Always the same nightmare every night, except for one minor detail; the person she saw always changed.

Not even in a dream she could tear her eyes off the horrific sight unfolding in front of her. It was like her feet were glued to the ground, her arms bound, and her eyes held open by someone's hands. Again she watched as someone held a saw in their hands, eyes drifting down the circular blade.

Every time the figure seemed to be different, or she couldn't remember what they looked like. It must've been her mind playing some dark joke on her. This time was different, though. No, this time the figure had a face that she could place, one she could remember.

The man in that secret room. The red hair was unmistakable, neither was the blank look in his eyes. He looked like this was just another Saturday, like this was his morning routine.

Those strange eyes drifted to where Erica watched. She felt them pierce her body, and for the first time, even if it was just a dream, she actually felt vulnerable. She watched as his eyes fell back on his work, the saw whirring to life, his hand descending it lower and lower until it cut into the dead girl's neck.

The girl strapped onto the table. That was the other change. Every time that body changed. Last time it was Irina shrieking in pain. Or was it fear? Honestly, Erica couldn't tell the difference, she was too busy trying to look away.

Blood sprayed onto the man's chest, but he didn't mind it. He just kept cutting until the head came disconnected from the body.

The urge to vomit hit her suddenly, and finally, she was able to take control of her body. Her legs crumbled beneath her, extending her arms to keep herself up as part of the things that kept down in the pit of her stomach came hurtling back out.

She felt someone next to her, examining her. She didn't want to look up, but her eyes ignored her, shifting upwards on their own accord. The man, whatever his name was, watched her curiously.

Before she could stand back up, a head, gripped by the hair, dangling right in front of Erica's face. She almost screamed at the nearly-albino-faced look of the girl. She was white, too white. The only thing of color was the purple highlight that stretched from her hair into the man's grip.

At last, the man dropped Chloe's head, just as Erica managed to pull herself out of the nightmare. Her breathing slowly settled down quickly, naturally, as the freerunner woke up. She didn't know that she was so sweaty until she brought a hand up to feel her forehead.

'Why was that one so bad?' was the first thought that came to the forefront of Erica's mind. Dreams had a strange way with people, that much was obvious to anyone, but why do they affect people so much? It was so strange. In reality, Erica would most certainly keep a nice composure, so what was it with dreams? Strange, weren't they…

Erica's mind fell to something she had forgotten up until that moment, quickly glancing off to the corner of her room where a Mickey sat, hugging his knees to his chest, and looking utterly freaked.

"I-I didn't know what to do," came his meek voice, his hands playing with the carpeted floor. His gaze hopped from Erica's face, worried she would be angry with him, back down to his fingers. "You're not mad, are you?" He asked, his eyes wide for fear of confrontation.

"Of course not, you're…" suddenly, she trailed off, noticing the haunted look in the innocent boy's eye. "You're fine," she gave him the best smile she could muster, however, it was easily noticed to anyone that wasn't Mickey, it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Mickey asked, suddenly a bit chipper than how he was a minute ago. "My mom once told me that talking to people helps. She said it was called something, but I don't remember what it was, started with a 'V', I think."

Mickey wasn't a shy boy, Erica came to see that sometime after they got off the plane. Scared to do things? Yes. Funny about that, too, she didn't know what attracted her to him. Not romantically, that was obvious, but as a friend. Usually, she'd never be friends with someone like Mickey, but this was...somehow different.

Regardless, Erica didn't feel comfortable talking about her dreams to anyone. Especially not one that could become an enemy of hers at some point. Chances were against it, but that didn't mean it couldn't happen.

Undeterred by the freerunner's lack of answers, the teenage child continued onwards, "I'll go first if you want." No answer. "I was really scared yesterday. I thought Brendan was gonna hurt me, but can you guess what?" Mickey's eyes lit up, and before Erica's lips could begin to move, he went on, "Emily saved me! She grabbed this rock and started to hit him!" His expression instantaneously fell when the last word left his throat. "I hope she didn't hurt him too badly, though. He scared me, but I think Emily really scared him away!"

Of course, he still didn't know any better. Seriously, how was that still possible after everything he's been through?

Goosebumps crawled up Erica's arms and back at the realization of what Emily did to Brendan. In front of Mickey, no less. Did he fully grasp what was going on, or was he in some kind of denial?

No, that was exactly what was going on. He was in denial. Clifford stole his innocence and he was doing whatever he could to hold onto it. That's why there was a haunted look in his eye, and yet, what he said brought up another question; what does he see Emily as?

Mickey adopted a sudden sad expression, lip quivering. "Poor Timothy. He must be really sad about Chloe…" slowly, he stopped. It didn't appear that he did the math in his head. Hopefully, he never did put the pieces together.

Ignoring the latest words that fell from the teenage child's lips, the words spilled out, unable to stop them from being said. "Are you okay?"

The boy looked to his friend, then glimpsed away. He found it hard to look people in the eye in these kinds of circumstances. Like he was being questioned by his parents. No getting out of this one.

"No…" his short declaration was meek, vulnerable.

Erica didn't respond. Emily killed a person. That was big news. A lot has happened in the last day, it seemed. The death of Brendan, although face it, no one was crying over that, and the discovery of Hunter's...was condition the right word? Whatever it was, it was dangerous to everyone.

Clifford had a mole in the game, which meant he could mold the game into his liking.

Was Lane the one who gave Chloe the fourth vote? She and Emily were a given, seeing as how Emily still had a hold over her, Timothy and Mickey wouldn't vote for her, she wouldn't have voted for herself, so that left Daisy and Hunter. If Clifford did have Hunter vote for the conspiracy theorist, then why would Daisy vote for her friend and ally? Did Emily find blackmail out on her, too? If so, that made her a major threat. Besides, with six people left, what did the blackmail matter at this point?

It was time to take action.

* * *

They say the eyes are the windows to the soul, but what happens when there isn't a soul left inside?

Hunter was looking at his bathroom mirror, his face completely blank with zero emotions. Internally, though, he didn't recognize the person looking back at him. Internally, he willed himself to reach over to the pistol hiding under his pillow, and push it against his head.

It was like he was watching his life play out in front of him through television. The only control he had was his thoughts, completely unable to use his facial muscles or words.

In the short time he was on the island he went from kleptomania, desperation, uncontrollable, temporary insanity, and back to being uncontrollable. Or rather, only being controlled by either St. Clarence or Clifford. Giving in to their every whim.

He had a chance of living when Lane took those earbuds off him, and what did he do with that chance? Gave in to the insanity the game provided. He'd been listening to the same song for what felt like years now that he immediately tried to give in to his dark desires

Gun pointing at his castmates. Gun being fired, glass shattering. Castmates run away. Walking calmly after them, St. Clarence's voice rebounding like an echo in his head.

Like clockwork, per every day, Hunter's feet glided across the ground as he made his way outside. Shutting the door firmly behind him, he made his way down the hallway, disregarding Emily's form as she entered her room.

Something he didn't see or hear occurring a little bit away, Daisy stepping away from the wall she was leaning against, hands resting on her temples. All she wanted to do was go back to her room and wait until she needed to leave. She didn't want to think about the things Emily said to her.

Killer. Murderer. Liar.

No, she wasn't. Unlike Emily, she actually felt remorse for her actions.

Killer. Murderer. Liar.

Chloe and Timothy were her friends, not just a stupid vote she had to rely on in order to survive.

Killer. Murderer. Liar.

She hated the game they played, Emily, on the other hand, she probably enjoyed the thrill of the game. Wasn't that something sociopaths enjoyed?

Killer. Murderer. Liar.

'Excuses, excuses,' Daisy rolled her eyes. She didn't know anything about sociopaths or psychopaths. The fact was, you couldn't justify murder, and playing the card 'doing this to survive' made it worse. Especially when you didn't mean it. Or in other words, one of the many definitions surrounding Emily.

Killer! Murderer! Liar!

Her muscles tensed and her legs fell stiff when Timothy's door opened, causing her to nearly slam into it at the velocity she was walking.

Agitation was thick in the air when Timothy's red eyes fell on Daisy. Agitation? Perhaps, but there was a good possibility that it was something else. Who knows with Timothy? The guy is usually pretty optimistic, but now that Chloe was dead...so much could change now.

The girl scout's voice became dry when she tried to speak. What could she say, anyway? A sorry wouldn't cut it. His fucking girlfriend was dead. The person he cared so much about, risking quite a bit of himself in order to keep her safe, then to find out it was all for naught.

Under rare occasions, she found herself speechless. Simultaneously, she found it just as rare of an occasion when Timothy's lips were in a thin line. No hint of a smile. If anything, it looked like he was trying his best to not frown.

Just seeing Daisy began the want to ignite hatred and direct it at his friend. Former friend? He didn't stop to consider that. He came to realize, however, that he didn't have any hatred in him. Positivity was a powerful emotion, he knew that better than anyone. So sadness, depression was something that was strange to him. The optimist in him pushed every chance of the dark cloud rolling in away, and now it felt...horrible. Like something was missing.

Though he knew precisely what was missing. Chloe. In defiance of only perceiving her for a short time, it felt like it was a lifetime, as cliché as that sounded.

"Hey," Timothy managed to speak, kicking the word out from the depths of his throat.

"Hi." Oh yes, the tension was most definitely palpable.

"Why, Daisy?" They came out before he could stop them. "She was your friend…" A weak smile grew, "I loved her."

Daisy's eyes hardened. "And what was gonna happen when it was just the two of you left?"

The optimist's lips parted, then closed. Then, "We'd figure it out. I'd...I'd sacrifice myself."

The girl scout scowled. "No, you wouldn't. Don't play the 'what if' game, we both know you wouldn't do something like that. As painful as it is to realize this, there was never going to be a happy ending between the two of you."

Timothy knew she was right, as much as he didn't want to concede. It was unlikely Chloe and he could've gotten off the island together, and that was naïve of him.

"You know, Chloe's death has been eating away at me, I didn't want to do it, but, it's like someone I fucking despise said, it's a dog eat dog world, which means we do what we can do to survive."

Her hand swiped across her cheek, a finger gaining a small droplet of water. How long had she been crying?

"You're crying," Timothy frowned. He didn't like to see anyone sad, not even if it were his worst enemy.

"Fuck you," Daisy spat. She didn't need his pity, not from anyone. Spinning on her heel, she began her walk down the hallway, limping the whole way.

Today wasn't going to be a good day. It wasn't going to be easy to recover from Chloe's death. Timothy probably couldn't ever get over it. If he managed to ever get off the island, it would take a long time to rebuild the positivity he created over the years, as well as, maybe, a year's worth of therapy.

Photos being taken. A boy and a girl meeting for the first time. A couple's first kiss. A couple growing closer. A fight. Self-inflicted scars across the girl's arm. Broken promises. A girl in a crumpled heap. Blood pooling beneath the girl's body. A boy hugging the girl close, tears running down his face.

"May all contestants head downstairs and join me in the main room?" Clifford's voice echoed, loud and clear. Upon hearing it, Timothy forced his usual grin back into place and slowly started to follow Daisy, the minor actions he did betray the sadness he tried to hide.

Daisy had a completely different thought process from her ex-friend. How could she fix the friendship she so eloquently broke with Timothy? Why even bother, really? One of them will be dead by the end of the week. Another person Clifford remorselessly chopped in half or lit on fire, or whatever he had in mind that day.

It was funny, in a humorless sort of way. Up until joining the game, the girl scout never thought she'd be killed. Every time she imagined her own demise, it was always by her own hand or old age. Never in a situation like this.

* * *

It was strange to see Timothy's smile not reach his eyes, Emily noted while she sat down at one of the tables. Didn't take a genius why. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Hunter flip a coin from hand to hand. The mole. And she was starting to think Clifford was letting the game go by fairly. Apparently not, considering two things: Hunter being under Lane's thumb, and killing Chloe despite her immunity idol.

"Remember when I told you to kill Timothy?" She recalled the sadist saying. "I didn't lie. I told you that if you didn't kill him, I would kill you. I'm a man of my word." What did that mean? Did the two of them make some kind of deal? One that she broke because Chloe fell for Timothy? And hard, at that.

That was ironic, 'I'm a man of my word,' well clearly not! Went back on your word regarding the idols. Who knows if the third one is still in play. Does someone have it? As far as the loner knew, only one idol was still in play.

A small smirk appeared on her face. She was still safe. Blackmail and a safety net ensured that, but if those idols were now null and void to the original rules, she'd have to think fast. Get blackmail on someone else...or maybe steal that pistol off Hunter and shoot one of her enemies through the skull.

The very thought sent a shiver of pleasure coursing through her body.

Emily could see that while Erica was trying to be calm, act the part, it was easy to separate her wariness from the collectiveness. The brief glance over in Hunter's direction gave it away.

Five people left to go. It was unearthly. A little while longer and she'll be back home. But what then, though? Play the part of a traumatized teenager, maybe get an interning position with her city's police department. Homicide, perhaps? Forensics? Then she'd be able to return to this fantastic feeling. She'd be lying to herself if that was all it would take.

This feeling...it was new to her. One she never felt before coming to the island, and it was the only thing she could thank Clifford for introducing to her. The sensation of being the person who caused the death of another person. You're taught that it is immoral, wrong. Then you're taught to think killing is a 'sin'. Not that it mattered to her, Emily never believed in God, or any of that religious bullcrap. The point was, it isn't something you go around doing.

Emily believed that for the longest time, killing was wrong and was the worst crime anyone could commit. Her opinion changed when she planted that note that caused Roxie's sudden downfall. She reveled in that moment, and for the first time realized she was sadistic. Entirely? No. A little bit? Yes. So much excitement flooded her veins every time she caused the death of another player.

Killing another human had started to become a fantasy of hers. An opportunity she truly hoped would be able to happen during her time on the island before she got off. If she got off.

Fireworks in her head went off when she brought a large rock down on Brendan's face, over and over until the body stopped twitching, and Emily knew she had accomplished her wish. She hoped - no, wished for the feeling of euphoria to last. It was nothing she'd ever felt before.

"Welcome, everyone!" Came the malicious voice of Clifford Lane, one hand on his umbrella handle, and the other behind his back. Upon reaching the other end of the room, his hand fell from his backside and pinned a photo on the board. Krystal, Travis, Jerome, Ted, Jack, Jewel, Elsie, and Dylan on the top row. Kevin, Marisa, Roxie, Lizzy, Jade, Eduardo, Alexei, and Jace on the second row. Then came the last row, consisting of two people. Irina, and Chloe. "In seventh place is Chloe."

No, that was impossible, Timothy thought, tears beginning to take form in his eyes. The girl in that photo...her face was so empty, skin deathly pale, and eyes, formerly held with love for Timothy whenever he looked at her, were empty. Glassy.

Another corpse pinned up on the board, this time someone people knew decently well. Every serial killer has a trophy they keep, maybe these were Clifford's?

"I don't think it was love you thought the two of you had," Clifford smirked, spinning around and gazing to Timothy, his distressed air visible through the thin exterior he put up. "I think you liked to think you loved each other, you and Chloe, but it was really just lust." Slowly, he walked closer and closer to one of his many victims, an evil smile plastered.

"That's not true," Timothy argued, his voice holding a mix of emotions. Anger. Sadness. Loss. Hatred.

Clifford's eyes narrowed but his smirk never faltered.

"Maybe. Maybe not," He turned away. "Shall we begin your next challenge?" He asked with a deadly smile.

Lane started to walk towards the door, the tip of his umbrella creating a tapping sound that echoed through the room at his every step. Raising his free hand above his head, he called for a 'come hither' gesture with his hand, wordlessly telling the final six to follow him. Not like they had much of a choice, either follow or risk getting shot through the eye.

As per usual, no one gave any quarrel as they left. No one voiced a sound, a mutual silent agreement between the cast, or something natural that slowly developed.

Death was hard to get over, principally when it was someone close. Someone you cared so deeply about. Someone like Chloe. Dylan. Jade. So many fucking people. So many people have lost family and friends from this one show. It should be no wonder people want or should want, Lane's head.

If you asked Timothy Brookes two months ago if someone deserved to die, he would've said no in a heartbeat. Before coming onto this island, he would've argued people could come back, get a second chance.

Things change.

Now if you were to ask that question, the answer would still be no, although they shouldn't get a second chance. Then he would tell you there was one exception of a person he thought deserved to die. Clifford Lane deserved to die.

For the first time, a thought crossed Timothy's mind, one he hadn't ever had before. Wished Clifford would just drop dead, do everyone a favor. Curious, was there an afterlife? If there was, it gave Timothy something to look forward to. To see Chloe again. Fuck… Her death was a big reality check on him. That you can't always look to the bright side, because sometimes there wasn't one, and really, you just ended up fooling yourself.

The more he looked at it the more Timothy thought he was his own worst enemy. True thoughts? Debatable. These dark thoughts he had could've also been caused by self-condemnation for failing to save Chloe. To stop her death from occurring, because she was one of the people who he believed were entitled to come out alive. So many things she wanted to see and do, but now unable to do any of it after Clifford took her life away. No, she had to still be alive.

Denial was back.

A tear slipped down his cheek to the dirt below.

Killing Clifford won't bring Chloe back. The normally optimistic teenager wished it would bring her back, bring everyone back, but he knew that the hope was as good as someone changing the television channel with their mind. Improbable. Impossible.

'Don't forget about me.'

Never. How could he, she meant so much to him. He loved her and she loved him. Timothy had had girlfriends in the past, two of them, but neither of them lasted long. The first girl was someone who thought she could take advantage of the unsuspecting optimist. It didn't work in her favor, her best friend told him what she was doing, and they soon started to date after breaking up with the other girl. It lasted about two months before the mutual decision believed they'd be better off as friends.

They were.

Up until the start of the show, they were in constant contact.

To be quite honest, he didn't really care about dating all too much. Not as in the form of looking for someone, that is. He knew he'd meet someone at some point, and he thought that was true when he fell for Chloe. Not just beyond friendship like most teenage relationships, but actual love, despite how quick it was. The right people met each other, but at the wrong place. If only they'd crossed paths anywhere else.

'I-I don't want to die.'

'You're not going to die.'

Chloe's hand slipping away from his. Her eyes becoming glassy, staring away at nothing. The heart in her chest ceasing to beat. Blood gushing out of her chest as her life faded away. The knowledge that came over her in those last few seconds, that she knew she was about to die.

'I'm so cold.'

'You'll be fine!'

There was so much desperation in Timothy's voice as he did his best, no, those aren't even the right words. It went beyond that. He wanted to will her blood back in, to heal her from Clifford's stab, but there was nothing he could do. Too many vital organs were sliced through in the sadist's swift impalement. Her skin becoming cold at that very second. Was she even cold, or was it something she could only feel? Timothy thought he felt the heat disappear from her hands, but it must've been all in his head.

'Don't forget about me.'

Her last words before she fell still. Forever. Gone. Like flicking a light switch. A moment that kept repeating in his head. It was surreal to say those three words, three words he didn't want to hear or say.

Chloe was dead.

Looking up, Timothy found himself staring at the redesigned amphitheater. Not so many great memories last time he was here. It could've been a great day in the long scheme of things, but after the most recent events...well...stop it! Stop thinking that way!

"For some of you, this challenge could be seen as a reprieve from your last one," Clifford smirked as the final six stepped up onto the stage.

Six pedestals sat in a crescent moon shape, facing outwards and at a larger, seventh pedestal, twelve neatly stacked cards on separate colored outlined squares, each color the same as the six pedestals.

"Shall we begin?" Clifford asked, stepping over to the seventh pedestal. "Let's align some of you. Timothy, you're green," he started, waving his hand at the pedestals, "Erica is blue. Emily, orange. Mickey, how about purple? Daisy, you will be red. Emily, you're now yellow. That leaves Hunter as white," the grin was horrific, his hand curling at the last pedestal, drifting back behind his waist.

No complaints were made, the six finalists making a way to their respective pedestals. The only sound that of the wind blowing.

"Your challenge for today is going to be...straightforward," Lane rapped his fingers over the length of the pedestal, "a nice game of truth or dare."

Daisy scoffed. "Seriously? What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Now, Daisy, haven't we already discussed this?" He leaned forward, a chuckle passing through his mouth, "Now, how this will work is I will go through each of you one by one, asking you the game's questions. If any of you refuse either choice or refuse to answer a truth or do a dare, then you'll be out of the running for immunity. Last person standing wins. It's simple, you'll see."

Laying the tip of the umbrella on his shoe, he kicked it upwards, grasping it in his fingers, and swinging it around across the pedestal.

The sadist dropped his hands on the cards within the yellow outline, glancing to where Emily stood. "Now, how about we start with Emily? After all, you were the one who won immunity last time."

Well, that gave her a reason to be nervous. She swallowed, lifting her head just slightly higher.

"Truth or dare, Emily?" Clifford almost whispered, thumbs on the back of two of his cards, ready to flip either of them over.

See, in any usual game of truth or dare, the questions would be simple. Harmless fun between some girly teenagers of some kind. Now, though, with Lane with the questions and dares, it could be anything. Honestly, though, it was most definitely his dares would be bloody and brutal. Destroy your entire hand with a hammer, that kind of thing.

As for truths, on the other hand...they could be anything. What could they be?

Either way, it was better safe than sorry. She'd rather have a hand then spilling all her secrets to people she barely knew. So, with that in mind…

"Truth," Emily answered reluctantly, voice unwavering.

The sadist smiled, one hand resting on the pedestal in front of him, and the other flipping a card over. His eyes scanned over the contents, gleaming with vexation. Neatly, he moved the card closer to his torso, flipping it back over, away from prying eyes.

"Tell me, Emily," Clifford started, crossing his legs, leaning down across the pedestal, "what is your opinion on death. No," he went on, "scratch that, a bad wording." He pursed his lips, looking like he was thinking despite knowing the exact words he wanted to say. His fingers tapped the pedestal swiftly, creating the sound of a horse galloping. "How about this, what did you feel when you murdered Brendan?"

The girl he was speaking to's breath hitched. How didn't she see something like that being brought up? 'Truth or dare, Emily. Have you killed someone?' No, they couldn't know the truth about that. She could feel their eyes on her, and it did nothing to help her rapid breaths. Stop looking at her!

"Didn't you love that feeling of power rush up your fingertips?" Clifford's fatal smirk was back in place. "How great did you feel as you brought that rock down on Brendan's head, to watch his life wash out and know you are the cause?"

The unpredictable loner gripped the edge of her pedestal as she tried to even out her breathing.

"No, you're wrong," Emily stated when she could get her word in and stated in a tone that was calm, like she was in control. "I'm only trying to do what I can do to survive. Just like everyone else here," she tilted her head to the side, wordlessly gesturing to Daisy.

An air of absolute silence was overwhelming, especially after what Clifford made a hint towards. Blackmail could be understandable, but the enjoyment of killing someone? Understandable when it came to Clifford, but not even Emily could be that screwed up, could she? Timothy didn't think so. They were all good people in a difficult situation, it was all this was.

Clifford could probably never comprehend that. He wasn't capable of those feelings in which Timothy, Erica, Mickey, Dylan, Jade, Lizzy...Chloe had. Was he ever capable of those feelings? Maybe a long time ago. No one knew anything about Clifford, and yet Timothy of all people felt as though that was a good thing.

Clifford's smirk didn't falter, in fact, it seemed to become wider than ever. He reached a hand into his trench coat pocket, leaning back on his feet, away from his pedestal.

"No," Lane started, circling around the front of his black plinth, "No, if that were the case, you would've let Mister Gardener kill Mickey," he pointed at the terrified looking Mickey with his umbrella, smiling deviously when he saw him wince. Possibly because of what he knew what was beneath the umbrella's exterior. "But you didn't."

Emily felt uneasy, it was clear to anyone who saw her. She had been exposed once, and that was hard enough to face as it was, mixed with the attention it got her. But this...this was something else. The narrative she so carefully created was beginning to fall apart, all from this one question.

"You killed Brendan because you wanted to know what it felt like. To feel the power."

Clifford let his eyes fall from Emily to each of the contestants. He wanted to see their reactions so far before this next part. Mickey looked terrified, but that could've been for any number of reasons. Erica, as per usual, looked very calm, but he could see in her eyes how nervous she was. Timothy looked uncertain, that was all he could say other than the sadness dripping off him. Daisy, though, she looked conflicted, as if she were having an internal argument.

"How about I prove my point?" He asked, backing up over to Emily's pedestal, then spinning around to face her. Pulling his hand out of his pocket, he delicately placed his Ruger SR1911 on right in front of the unpredictable loner.

For a heartbeat, no one said a word. The only sound was that of the cameramen pointing their rifles at Emily, a wordless warning in the chance she felt brave enough to shoot Clifford. At once, the tension returned, so thick it could be cut with a knife.

"Now then," the sadist moved back to the front of his own pedestal, leaning back on it. "With that, why don't you shoot someone? Who's the person you've had the most history here with?" Glancing back across the pedestals, each of them, minus Hunter, with a look of surprise and horror of some kind, no matter how hard they tried to hide it. "Daisy."

"What?" Daisy's eyes widened, dropping her hands to her side. Before she was able to completely understand the situation she was just thrust into, she felt two hands on her arms, forcing her forward. "No!" she screamed.

With everyone looking at Daisy, nobody noticed when Emily picked up the Ruger, a soft simper playing at her lips.

The glare Daisy shot Clifford when the two cameramen reached them was unfathomable. Full of as much hate and venom as she could muster. "You mother fucker," the girl scout spat, falling to her knees when the two men pushed her down. No point in trying to fight it now. She had that window of opportunity a moment ago, but that passed. Given the sudden turn of events, she didn't know why she was so surprised when Emily joined her, pistol in hand.

"You can't do this!" Timothy yelped softly, more to Clifford than to Emily. Ever the optimist, he didn't think Emily could shoot Daisy, regardless of their differences.

"Oh, but I can!" Lane exclaimed, ignoring Erica's movement while she turned Mickey away from the site.

Slowly, the pistol rose up, barrel pointed at Daisy's head. The loner could feel her heart pounding in her chest, but it wasn't because she was scared, not at all. It was because she was excited.

As Emily's finger pulled down on the trigger, her gaze came to lock with Daisy's. 'I wish I could say I was sorry,' she tried to say with her eyes.

'Go to Hell,' Daisy's replied.

Click.

Nothing.

The grin that had begun to form disappeared as Emily's brow furrowed. Again trying to cock the pistol, she pulled the trigger once more. Again, there was nothing. No bullet or the sound of a bang. Just the sound of a click less than a second after she pulled the trigger.

"I don't understand," Emily began, lowering the pistol.

"You proved my point," Clifford smirked evilly, taking the Ruger back from Emily, cutting in before she could continue her train of thought. "You not only tried to eliminate Daisy because it would lower the numbers, no, you did it because you liked the feeling of invincibility it gave you." He spun around, purposefully avoiding Daisy as she stood up, dropping his pistol back into his trench coat pocket.

"Besides, you should know that if you did off her, we'd not have another execution tonight, given our shortage of players." He leaned back on the pedestal, ignoring everyone other than Emily, who remained standing where she was when she had a gun to her rival's head.

Another long pause. Then, "I can concede," she stated, face devoid of emotion.

A declaration that momentarily broke Erica's calmness. With a quick set glance at Emily, she could see the emotions on each of her castmates' faces. Ranging from shocked to horrified.

The unpredictable loner faced Clifford head-on, closing her eyes as she remembered her moments of bliss. "It felt so good to see Brendan die, how pleasurable it felt," she began, someone let out a quiet gasp, but she couldn't tell who it was. "It felt like a weight I never knew was there was taken off my shoulders. Then the chills of excitement came," she smiled, shivering in delight, "it was like nothing I'd ever felt before." Christ, it felt good to get that off her chest!

Out of everything they thought Emily would say, that wasn't it. Emily was...standoffish, quiet, intelligent, but no one ever took her for whatever this was supposed to be.

Guilt was gone.

She no longer felt remorse for her previous actions, the ones resulting in the deaths of fellow contestants. A few days ago she was capable of feeling guilty for what she did to Roxie, Eduardo, Jade, Irina, Chloe, but today all of that has changed. This game has turned her into something...new.

"So you lied before, you are a psychopath," Daisy glared, limping back to her pedestal, constantly looking between Clifford and Emily.

Emily frowned. "Psychopaths are genetically influenced, sociopaths are environmentally influenced. I've been affected by the latter." Taking a step back, she returned to her podium.

These were things nobody had foreseen.

A turn of events so fast the train derailed. If this was the first truth, who knew what the second was going to be.

"Daisy!" Clifford yelled, startling the girl scout at the sudden shout, "Truth or dare?"

The girl in question paused, placing her hands on the podium. From what she just witnessed from Emily, it looked as though the truth questions would more or less be blackmail opportunities that nobody found out earlier on.

Dares...well, Clifford was a creative psychopath, so they'll range from harmful to heinously painful.

On the surface, it should seem like a one-way answer, but when you delve deeper…there are too many complications. Too many variables.

"Dare," Daisy answered, wincing lightly at the thought of whatever act Lane put upon her.

The sadist gained that all-too-familiar smirk of his, hand flipping over one of the two cards he carefully laid his hands on. Reading the card, the sadistic smirk grew larger.

"How about this, Daisy, how far are you willing to go in order to keep in the running for immunity? Willing to vote off a friend of yours, perhaps?"

The girl scout grimaced. Chloe. Her death was her doing. If she voted with her and Timothy then a lot of things would've changed. Her friendships wouldn't have melted if she hadn't voted for Chloe.

That sight was something hard to see. Her, bleeding out on the floor while he desperately pushed at her abdomen, trying to stop the blood from flowing out of her body. Him begging for her to stay with him, that she wasn't going to die, knowing he was lying to both her and himself.

Her haunting last words.

'Don't forget about me.'

How different things could've been.

'I'm sorry, Chloe.'

"Your dare is to pour a bottle of sulfuric acid onto one of your two hands," Clifford read from the card, grinning from ear to ear at Daisy's mousy expression. "Not as easy as you thought it might've been, huh?"

Daisy fell back on her heels. Pour sulfuric acid on her hand!? How could she do that to herself? She couldn't even imagine how painful that would be.

But she needed immunity. Who knew if Emily was targeting her, she wasn't exactly a woman of her word, and most definitely not someone you could trust. Especially not a girl who just admitted to enjoying the feeling of killing gave her, whether by proxy or not.

The silence was deafening. No sound had come from Daisy, which left the remaining five, technically four, if she'd go through with it or back out. To be sincere, none of them believed she'd go through with it. A drop of sulfuric acid on a person's body part would hurt, but a hand? That'd hurt so much!

Sure, Daisy was brave from time to time, but Emily didn't figure she was as fearless to - no, stupid enough to pour acid on her hand. She couldn't, not to herself, anyway.

Gripping the end of her pedestal, Daisy sucked in a deep breath. "Let's do it."

The proverbial knife came swooping down, slicing through the tension floating in the air.

A look of giddiness crossed Lane's features, the only person in the area who's contorted in such a way that wasn't surprising. "Jordan!" He shouted off to the left, tilting his head yet keeping his eyes firmly on the girl scout.

For a moment, nobody moved. Then, all eyes shifted towards a man who only a few of them had either paid any mind or noticed. A strange hairstyle that looked as though it were just painted on. Albeit, his face was something different, like he was made of dough. In his hand was a glass of a yellow liquid. Within the grip of his other hand was a white box with two silver latches on the front.

Gracefully, he set the glass of what Daisy presumed was sulfuric acid on the pedestal. Pushing his glasses up the bridge of his long nose, he unlocked the white box and spun it around to face the girl scout.

Stepping away, Jordan continued to stare at Daisy for a second longer, then moved off to the side of the stage.

Daisy breathed through her nose deeply. Placing one hand on the white box, she began to gradually open it up, revealing sets of bandages, types of medical lotion bottles, disinfectant, and many other first aid necessities.

She could feel the eyes of her friends and enemies burning into her, the most prominent being those terrifying eyes belonging to Clifford Lane. She hadn't even noticed her breathing picking up as she spread her hand over her pedestal, gripping the glass of acid in her hand. She shouldn't really think about this, just do it and get it over with. She knew that as soon as this was done she should use water and some ethanol, something she had in the first aid kit Jordan handed to her.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck!" The stream of curse words came rushing out of her mouth before she could stop them, gradually becoming louder and faster, the acid hovering just a few inches above her hand. There was no sound whatsoever, only her breathing. It was like she was the only one there.

It was out of her control now, her hand tilted, and the yellowish liquid came pouring out. It felt so slow while in reality, it was only going by in a couple of seconds. At first, she felt her heart in her throat, all air leaving her gut like she'd been punched. Then came the realization of what she just did, how this would forever scar her hand. She knew it would, but she hadn't thought much about the side effects until after she'd already started to pour the acid.

The pain was immediate, like her entire hand was on fire. The glass was half empty when she pulled it back, leaning forward and dropping her head on the plinth. "Jesus Christ!" She screamed, the hand lying on the pedestal no longer flat, her other arm forcing it still with her elbow.

Again, the girl scout reeled back, one hand shaking while she did her all to keep her burning hand still. The glass flipped over, emptying its contents. The result of the action pulled a scream from her mouth, loosening the glass from her grip, allowing it to fall to the wooden floor as she began to treat her wound.

Truth or dare? How could you choose one or the other? Painful on one hand, hurting parts of your reputation on the other? Of course, Clifford would turn a harmless fun game into a deadly one like this. The sadistic bastard, he loved to see people suffer. He got off on it.

How could anyone put people through this? The event of killing people on television, each more brutal than the last. The electric chair came first, then someone's head being bashed in, followed by someone getting thrown through a wood chipper. When they first came onto this island, those were the things nobody had foreseen.

Now, who was the next to go? Mickey, maybe? It was pure luck he was still on the island in the first place. By being carried by a friend, or whatever their relationship was. It was...unusual for a game like this.

Hunter? A possibility, but would Lane really let his mole be killed in such a way? It would be pretty anticlimactic for someone he put time and effort into brainwashing. He was someone with a flair for the dramatic.

Timothy could go next. He wasn't doing as well now, and he may never be that way again after what happened last night. Someone he cared for dying in his arms. That was very sad, wasn't it?

Erica, perhaps? Was she a threat? Debatable, but she was part of a large alliance, unwilling or not. It would help her game, however, to lose the extra weight.

It could be Daisy. She was out of friends, out of lifelines. The only person she could count on was Emily, her very worst enemy. And because of that status, she was bound to not go much further. By that, she needed to create some more lifelines.

Emily was a lost cause. No longer capable of feeling guilt, the traits of a sociopath slowly beginning to take form. Really, it was a surprise all of this didn't come sooner. Including her newfound lack of empathy, she also lacked friends. Her only allies remaining to be those she blackmailed.

Clifford smiled. The final six and soon to become five. Today was something to look forward to.

That grin of his returned full force when he heard Daisy groan, panting as she wrapped a bandage around her hand. Oh yes, today was something to look forward to.

* * *

The Arkwright was a long drive from civilization, giving Corrow plenty of time to wonder why he was going there in the first place. For one, this was way out of his jurisdiction, and the second was a note that was slipped into his pocket of which brought him here.

Still, it was a lead, and having one of those was better than not having any at all, which was the amount of them he had before that day in L.A. The question remained, however, why would someone slip a note into his pocket anyway? Someone who knew who he was, but who was that. Obviously, the Observer knew who he was, but who else knew? Who knew what he was looking for?

At last the long drive came to a stop. Turning the wheel to the car, he pulled off to the side of the large house, looking between what was ahead of him and the old looking house. Shifting gears into park, the detective slowly stepped out, a look of awe spreading over his face as he examined the house.

Dark, no lights. Made of stone, three separate roofs made of the same material, all gable roofs intersecting with one in the middle of the house. Three chimneys, Corrow noted. Glancing away, he took in the state of a shack some hundred feet away. Overall, the house had a certain...feel to it. One he couldn't pinpoint.

Corrow stepped over to the front door, knocking three times all the while keeping his eyes on the house. It was like something you'd see in a movie, never in real life.

He could barely register the sight of a door opening when a strong hand grabbed him by the collar, heaving him inside and shutting the door, then pushing him back so hard against the wooden door his head was thrown back.

"Sonovabitch," Corrow cursed in his daze, the blurry figure of a dark-skinned man holding him by the throat taking shape. He didn't pay him much thought, reaching down for his pistol he tucked away in his waistband, only to find it absent.

"Ya lookin' for this?" The man asked, hand outstretched with a grip around the barrel of Corrow's own Smith and Wesson MP.

The detective blinked several times, the blurry images finally giving way to a picture he could make out. He recognized the man holding him just as well as he recognized Chris McLean. He knew him, although he knew his attacker didn't know him.

Chef Hatchet scowled. "Who are ya?"

"Chef Hatchet?" Corrow's brow furrowed. This was an interesting development. Of what he predicted he would find at this house, Chef Hatchet was the last thing he thought of.

"Oi!" Came the shout of a Scottish accent, turning both the heads of Chef and Corrow. Someone the detective knew he had seen some time recently, but couldn't think of. "Whit are ya doin', ya dobber?"

Chef opened his mouth to respond, only to be promptly be cut off by the Scotsman. "I called 'im here. Stuck a wee note in his pocket."

The ex-cook glanced to Corrow and back, then let the detective go, retreating back a few feet, but not letting go of the pistol "Who is he?"

"Some detective workin' on yer Total Drama Murders shite," the elder man looked to Corrow, "Name's Thomas Fraser, I deh shake hands."

Chef stopped listening after his first sentence, face changing from hostile to interested in a heartbeat. "Chris's murder?' He asked, prompting a nod from Corrow. "What do you need from me?" He asked, albeit slightly cautiously.

Cooperative as soon as Chris's name was thrown out. It must hurt to lose such a good friend, even if they were a bit of a jerk from time to time. At least, based on what he saw on T.V. The detective glanced off, thinking how he would phrase his answer. Eventually he ultimately decided to be blunt, "The location of the island Clifford Lane is on."

The man opposite of him gained a neutral expression. "Why would you need that?"

"To fucking bring down Clifford Lane, and you are the only person who knows the island's location," Corrow responded, his own voice gaining a bit of hostility.

"That guy killed Chris, he's why I'm here, he doesn't know I'm here, man. We can't go to the island, that's a death wish." Chef turned away, opening a matchbox to toss into the fireplace.

"Well, that's a bit of a problem." Corrow murmured more to himself than anyone else. "Oh, fuck me."

Chef hummed, his head turning back ever so slightly.

The detective slumped down in one of the sofas, running a hand through his hair. "Lane sent some observer after me."

"What?" That got the cook's full attention. He spun around at once.

"This guy, I don't know what he hopes to find from me, but if he was keeping an eye on me," Corrow stood up, pieces of the puzzle falling into place, "then it wasn't me he was looking for. You're the only other person who knows the island's location which means-"

"-That you were meant to lead him to me," Chef finished, taking a quick look over at the nearest window. No cars, other than the one Corrow arrived in. Suddenly, he lunged for the detective, hands reaching around his throat. "Have you realized what this does to me?"

Fraser put his hand on Chef's shoulder, "Let 'em go, mate. Nae danger he'll get through the three of us, eh?"

Exchanging eye contact with Fraser, the ex-cook paused, then let Corrow go. "What do we do?"

Corrow started to speak, before again being interrupted, this time by Fraser. "Let's rig this place up with some traps. 'Ave some wee shotguns in the shack, we can blast this cunt's baw off."

Corrow rose an eyebrow, although from the corner of his eye he saw Chef's lip twitch upwards. The first hint of a smile since he got here. Despite what he thought, this was revenge. They might not trust him yet, but they both wanted the same things. Clifford had no idea of the hurricane coming.

* * *

"Cut off your ear," the sadistic host grinned before tossing the card away. "Oh, Jordan?" He called.

Right on cue, the newest addition to Lane's list of disciples sauntered to the white podium, placing another white box on top, and handing a large knife over to Hunter.

"That's not fair…" Erica said, one of the two finalists for this challenge. Everyone had given in so far. The first one to go was Mickey, which hadn't surprised anyone, followed by Timothy, then Emily, and finally Daisy. Truthfully, the game didn't last long.

Technically, she and Hunter were on the fourth round. Mickey dropped out during the first after Daisy poured acid on herself. During the second, Timothy refused to answer a question after asking for truth. In the third, both Emily and Daisy dropped out of the running, the former after being asked about a piece of paper in her pocket, one which she adamantly refused to show anyone, and the latter because she didn't want to go through any more sick dares or truths.

"You know he'll do whatever you say," Erica continued. She wasn't scared of calling out Clifford, she knew he wouldn't kill her unless provoked hard enough. She tried to find a loophole during this challenge but came up empty.

Clifford smirked devilishly. "Oh, so that is a problem, isn't it? Perhaps you should drop out? For his sake?" He tipped his head in Hunter's direction, who had already picked up the knife and bringing it to his ear.

Did Erica like Hunter? No. Not at all. Did she feel sorry for him? Yes. Lane was making him do these...horrible things, like what he did the other day, or tried to do. Or when he shot Dylan. No, she shouldn't think about that now, it'll cloud her judgment.

Hunter didn't deserve to go through the pain Lane was putting him through.

The blade trapped in Hunter's unwilling grip made the first slice, a line of blood leaking from the torn skin. He prepared to make a second cut, a deeper one when Erica spoke out.

"Stop!"

The knife paused, stares resonating between two people. Erica sighed. What was she doing? Making a practical mistake, that's what.

"Oh?" Clifford leaned far on his umbrella, putting all his weight to one side. This wasn't something he saw coming. He might've suggested dropping out of the game, but he didn't think she'd actually follow up on it. That wasn't fun at all.

Erica sighed again, dropping two hands to her side. "I'm out," sending Clifford a mocking smirk. She could just make out the sight of Clifford's eyes narrow. This surely put a dent in Clifford's plans.

"In that case," Clifford regained the composure he so rarely lost, "today's immunity goes to Hunter!"

No smiles of any kind. Hunter was a problem, and he was going to remain one until he was executed. Votes have changed, though. Targets have shifted, and that was the most worrisome thing of all.

"Your challenge is over." He tilted his head to one side, eyes unsettlingly firm on Erica, eyes locked. He was the first to break the contact, turning on his heel and walking away.

Everyone began to leave, some more slowly than others, a prime example being that of Daisy, her movements quick as she made her way over to her former ally. Latching her hand onto his, she held him back while the others started their trek back to the main cabin.

A look of unexpected surprise crossed Timothy's features. Daisy. The feelings he harbored for her were odd. A person he wanted to hate but unable to, and in spite of what she did, voting for Chloe, he still liked her as a person. She was forced into a precarious situation that she saved by doing the one thing that hurt her and someone else.

"We need to talk," the girl scout said, evening her shoulders.

Automatically, Timothy's gaze fell to the ground. He had a feeling he knew what this conversation was going to revolve around and he didn't think he was ready to talk about that. It was hard enough to keep the feeling of loss at bay, confrontation to one person who sent Chloe to her...demise was harder.

'Chloe would want you to win,' a voice whispered in his ear. A thought at the back of his head, begging to be let loose. 'For her,' it went on. Timothy's jaw clenched. A surge of determination came over him. Chloe would want him to win.

Still, that did nothing to quell the sadness inside.

When the ex-optimist didn't respond, Daisy continued, "I…" her throat dried up. "I-"

"It's okay," Timothy cut her off, smiling sadly at her. "I forgive you."

Daisy was taken aback. She was ready for an argument to break out, maybe her being slapped or punched in the gut or something, but not that. Ever the optimist, wasn't he?

"You do?" She asked, not quite sure he was telling the truth.

"Yeah." He nodded slowly, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I don't like what you did, I hate it...but I get it. It was something you had to do." A tear escaped the edge of his eye, leading him to furiously wipe at his face.

"You know, you and Chloe might've been my best friends, up until…" she trailed off, eyes gaining a faraway look in them.

"Until what?" The ex-optimist asked in a small voice, quiet and unsure.

The girl scout seemed to return, glaring at nothing in particular. "Until Emily fucked with my head. Convinced me to vote off one of my friends."

That caught Timothy off-guard. Emily? No, that couldn't be… He didn't think - well, he didn't think she was on the road of turning into a sociopath, either. But he gave her a chance. The day he, Chloe, and Daisy debated on whether or not they should vote for her during the next execution, and he was sure the blackmail thing was a one-time thing in order to keep herself alive.

If only he could go back in time, stop himself from making a big mistake. It was too late. Chloe was dead because they didn't think she was capable to be behind a person's death.

"Emily...she planned Chloe's death…" Timothy trailed off. He could feel tears welling in his eyes once more. Hate. A sentiment he had reserved for only Clifford for the situation he put them in, but knowing Emily was the cause, the real cause of her death, and enjoying it...he hated her just as much as Clifford.

The last thing he expected in response to the tears that flowed was a hug Daisy enveloped him in. But he accepted it anyway. Reaching around Daisy, he pulled her closer and dropped his head on her shoulder, sobbing into her collarbone.

"I'm so sorry," the girl scout whispered.

They didn't go any further than a simple hug, no rubbing his back or any of that, just a little comfort, and for that, Timothy was grateful.

* * *

Night had fallen, quicker than yesterday. The challenge was a long one. Six to five. Another person was going to die. Soon, another person was going to have their photo taken and put on that damn board, right next to Chloe.

Once everyone settled on the couches, Jordan locked the doors. He was amazed that there hadn't been any blood on the couches, really. That must've been a difficult feat. With his task complete, he strode over to a metal bowl settled on the table. Filled with molten metal. Slowly, he started putting on his gloves.

Clifford spun the platter of five marshmallows. The challenge might not have gone as he wanted it to, but there was still a kill to look forward to. What made it better was knowing exactly who that person was going to be.

"From twenty-four to seven to six, and now, to five. You should be excited, to be this close to the end. To be this close to coming off this island alive," the last word floated menacingly off his tongue. He seemed to enjoy the thought of death more than life itself.

Four of the cast members shifted in their seats, be it by uneasiness or another thing as a whole.

"Let us begin…

"Hunter."

Robotically, the kleptomaniac's hand came upwards, snatching the marshmallow out of the air. In any normal context, it would've been impressive.

"Timothy."

The optimist squeezed his hand. It felt lonely without the comfort of Chloe's…

"Erica."

The freerunner ignored the marshmallow, allowing it to bounce off her leg. She wasn't Emiily's, it was time she knew that.

"Daisy."

The girl scout shut her eyes. Today, a massive pain in the side was to be removed. Her heart pounded. But death...only so many people deserved to die.

Emily frowned. So Erica didn't vote with her, she assumed. Obviously not, she, for whatever reason, liked the little wimp.

Mickey hugged himself. Erica told him he'd be okay. He trusted her, but it still didn't help his mind from running wild. What if she was wrong? What if they didn't like him enough? Did they like him? He hoped they did!

Jordan started to move. Clifford brought his voice down dangerously low. "Mickey," he announced, flicking the marshmallow off the platter. It was interesting to see the teenage child burst into tears of relief.

Emily's head fell back. So, she was on the receiving end of the most votes. She felt Jordan's hand on her shoulder, pulling her towards Clifford. It was when she reached him that she shrugged Jordan's hand off her, eyes fixated into a terrifying glare.

Ever so slowly, she dipped her hand into one of her pockets and placed her immunity idol delicately in Clifford's hand.

Timothy and Daisy's gasps erupted from their mouths. This...was another thing they hadn't foreseen.

The unpredictable loner sat back down, this time next to Daisy. Flashing the shocked girl a grin, she whispered just low enough so that only she heard her. "So, let the games begin, then?"

Daisy gnashed her teeth in rage. Emily was still alive. She had an idol. Discreetly, she offered Emily a hand, whispering back, "Let the games begin," sending her a false smile. When Emily slipped her hand into Daisy's in a handshake, the girl scout squeezed much harder than she had to.

"W-wait," Mickey stuttered, doing quick math in his head. It only took seconds for the pieces to come together, and a panic attack started right when Jordan pulled him by the shirt over to the bowl of molten metal. "Erica!" He shouted, tears already streaming. "Help!"

"Do you get off on this?" Erica snapped at Clifford, standing up, much to the sadist's chagrin.

"You could say that," Lane responded, twirling his umbrella in one hand.

Jordan stopped in his tracks. From what he had seen so far, nobody had actually stood up to Clifford, especially not during an execution. Maybe that's what this was supposed to be, her stalling while Mickey made his getaway.

"I wanna know something," Erica jutted out her chin, crossing her arms. "What makes you so infatuated with death and your lack of interest in life? Is it because you want to die, but are too afraid to go through with it?"

Lane's smirk disappeared. Good, she was getting under his skin. All apart of the plan. "Stop, Jordan," he said but gave no word to release Mickey. "I'm afraid you're wrong, Erica, it's just that you have more fun in life!" He attempted to lift his smirk back into place. "Can we get on with the execution now?"

"No," was the quick answer. Erica dropped one hand into her pocket, producing a folded up note. Smoothly, she took the paper from her pocket without Clifford noticing as she went on. "I think you were so heavily in love with someone that when they died, you had a breakdown. Created a new life for yourself?" Erica sent Lane a smirk of her own. "I think you're a compulsive liar who makes up his own story as he goes along."

There was a notable strain in the aura surrounding the final six.

Clifford didn't know if he should laugh or not. "Love," he rolled his eyes. "What a stupid thing. You think-"

"There's one thing I know for certain, though," Erica interrupted. She knew she was in dangerous waters here, but she had to keep pushing. "At the end of this whole thing, nobody is gonna remember your name, you'll just be referred to as an off the meds Chris McLean." She smiled mockingly at him.

Then the sound of a gun going off followed, and Erica's body slumped to the floor, her head hitching back as a cloud of pink exploded.

The movement of Clifford taking aim with his Ruger was so quick not many people saw it.

Everything came rushing back at once. The person lying dead on the ground wasn't Mickey, no, it was Erica.

"No!" Mickey sobbed, reality catching up with him just as it had with everyone else. "No! Erica!" Weeping, the boy leaned forward in Jordan's arms, his hair concealing his face and tears.

The sadistic host frowned at the newest corpse. Usually, he'd have found this to be a great addition, but the fact that he was played for a fool struck his pride with a knife. "Well then, I suppose that's our execution," he murmured reluctantly, grinding his teeth together.

At that news, Jordan's hands on Mickey fell away, and the boy collapsed by Erica's side. His hand found hers. There, he found the rolled-up note she hid away from Clifford. Still, it did nothing to cease his tears.

Lane scratched his chin, his composure returning. "You were very lucky to have such a 'bold' friend," he told Mickey, circling around Erica's body, then crouching down next to her and Mickey, not caring for the blood that has gathered on his trench coat. "Oh dear, look what you made me do, Erica. And I had such high hopes for you." He made a leisurely gesture with his hand, moving her hair from her face, still holding a mocking smile, then ran his fingers through the pool of blood, soaking the each of them.

Turning on his heel, Clifford made for the door, sticking his blood-soaked fingers into his mouth. He began the outro as he made his way down the gravel pathway.

"Well, that was a shame. On the bright side, we'll have a proper execution next time on Total Drama Zenith."

* * *

 **AN:** So...I apologize if this one wasn't worth the wait. On the bright side, shorter chapter next time, and it all revolves around the Chef-Corrow storyline, so, look forward to that! Ciao!


	17. Arkwright

Arkwright

The world seemed to sing when wind slapped against the stone walls of the behemoth monstrosity that was the Arkwright. Bursting of gunfire sounded through the air, hugging the same walls the previous breeze beat against. Glass shattering, bottles breaking.

Time was running out, by far as Corrow knew at the moment, there are fifteen dead kids and counting. A number bound to continue growing. Until the moment either all but one were dead or until Clifford sits ready to perish on death row.

Problem was, finding Paspinêw Island remains the one obstacle between Clifford's lifetime in prison, and twenty-three children being mercilessly slaughtered. And the man known as Chef wasn't so keen on sharing that location with someone he didn't yet trust. Worse so, the Observer remained out and about. And soon, very soon, he'll be coming for them.

There was a three-step process Corrow has to keep in mind for the next few hours. Days? A difficult one to fulfill, he thought.

First, he had to get Chef to trust him, and given the circumstances, trust wasn't easy. Fraser, though, he trusted Corrow and he knew him even less. Trusted him enough to give Corrow an address, one that led right to Chef Hatchet's literal doorstep.

Step two is removing the Observer from the picture. Stop him from killing Chef or reporting to Clifford or whatever it is he's meant to do, most likely the former. It wouldn't make much sense otherwise.

Then came step three, the reason he was here in the first place. To find a way to put an end to this nightmare. To get the coordinates of the island of the show Clifford Lane hijacked.

He couldn't fail now. Not when he's this close. Not when this is the only lead he has.

It's not like the three of them could leave this place, either. Too risky. The Observer would hunt them down and kill them when they least expected it. Here, however, they could prepare for when Lane's underling inevitably popped up.

Another gunshot boomed, echoing in the quiet air of the Scottish Highlands. Corrow fixated his eyes to an empty beer bottle Fraser previously set up. Target practice, the Scotsman told him.

Chef fired again and the glass of the beer bottle exploded in shards flying every which way.

"Nice one," the detective complimented absentmindedly.

"Don't congratulate me for killing people, boy," Hatchet roughly replied, moving to reload his Winchester Model 70.

Corrow took an accidental step back, face abashed. He was about to speak when Fraser interrupted him from behind, a shotgun needing to be loaded, hanging by his elbow.

"So are we fighting, exactly." Ah. The number one question.

Chef snapped his rifle shut on the bullets he loaded in, sweeping his eyes from Corrow to Fraser then back to Corrow again.

The detective crossed his empty hands, noticing how cold it was for the first time since his arrival to the Scottish Highlands. "I don't know his name."

"This Lane bawbag?" Fraser inquired and Corrow couldn't help the twitch of his lips.

"No." Corrow shook his head away from the older man. He was the only one without a gun, he noticed. Not hard to figure out why that was. They didn't trust him. Or at least, Chef didn't trust him. "No, he's someone who's been observing me somehow. I don't know how," he breathed, watching the air frost ever so slightly.

"Why you?" The ex-cook asked, thumb stroking the side of his rifle. "Why not someone else? CIA, maybe?"

Again, Corrow just shook his head. "I'm not sure. Maybe I just showed up on Clifford's radar?"

"Mibay, or mibay it's the same reason you came up on my radar." Thomas Fraser. The one person here Corrow knew absolutely zilch about, other than the obvious. Maybe the question wasn't where Chef had gone, but how Fraser and Chef met? "Killing a wee bastart?" He suggested.

Killed a bastard? Corrow mulled over the idea. Who would've…

"Owen Slater," he realized.

"That's the one!" Fraser pointed with his free hand.

"You knew? Who killed McLean?" The detective asked in near outrage. They knew this whole time and they didn't take action? Why!?

"We both did," Fraser answered his suspicions without preamble. "Deh get ragey at me, we well couldn't do nothing without sticking our necks out."

Corrow resisted the urge to raise an eyebrow. Poker face. It helped him in so many situations with suspects. If they didn't think you knew anything they were bound to slip up.

"So why the change of heart?"

"Eh, don't word it like that," the Scotsman frowned. "Nae all of us are as heroic as ye."

Getting answers wasn't going to be as easy as he thought. It seems that while Fraser is a bit more open, he's just as stubborn as Chef is when it comes to things they don't want to share.

Speaking of Chef...

"Can you two quit flirting?" The ex-cook barked, earning the attention of the two men. "We don't have the time to argue," He glanced at the sun's position. They had at least five hours until nightfall, "Most ambushes happen during the night."

"In that case," Fraser was speaking again, taking the center of attention away from Chef, "we should set some traps in an' around the house."

"Thomas," Chef hissed, "this is your home." Interesting, this seemed to be a side of Hatchet the show didn't, well, show much of. It was weird working with a celebrity, thinking you know what they're like, only for your expectations to be righteously flipped around.

"Aw, who cares?" Fraser questioned. "Ye're always goin' on about how you hate my bit. Cauld and dreich, that's what you said!"

Hatchet sighed in exasperation, trying his best to ignore Fraser's cocky grin. Turning away from the two, he started marching back to Arkwright.

Corrow moved to follow when Fraser stopped him, pressing a hand to his chest. "Ah found this for ye, by the way."

He couldn't even begin moving his fingers before Fraser slammed a body of cool steel against his palm. Sunlight catching, reflecting across the silver of a Smith and Wesson Performance Center Model 629 Hunter.

It felt right in his hand, the detective noticed. Better than the Smith and Wesson MP Hatchet refused to return to him. No hard feelings there, it wasn't personal. It was smart. Who would, in this situation? Besides Fraser, that is.

Whatever, it didn't matter for the time being. Now, he had a way of defending himself.

He looked up to thank Fraser, only to find that he was walking back towards Arkwright on his own.

Figures.

Checking the ammo the Scotsman supplied him, he extended his arms, barrel pointing down at a glass bottle about ten feet away, standing motionless, proudly, at the top of the shooting gallery they set up within the time span of ten minutes.

Finger itching the trigger, breathing relaxed, calm. Corrow shut one eye and lined up the shot. This would be the first time he fired a gun since the Observer shot his hand.

Exhale. Calm yourself, detective, he thought to himself. He pulled down the hammer.

Quiet. A stillness he hadn't made himself comfortable yet. He needed to, soon. Loud noises around the Arkwright could certainly come in handy in warning of the Observer heading their way. Hopefully, he didn't know that.

He pulled the trigger, revolver instantaneously recoiling in his arms, like it wanted to escape his grasp. The bullet sailed through the air for a second, just a moment. Then it impacted. Just barely grazing the bottle that stood still. It mocked him for his failure.

How pathetic is it that he couldn't even fire his gun anymore? He used to be a great shot, and now, he used to pride himself on that. Now he couldn't even shatter an immobile beer bottle.

* * *

Seemed that life enjoyed throwing Hatchet an occasional curveball every once in a while. No matter how much he tried to stay away from torment, it always found a way back to him.

Today was no exception, so it seemed.

"What happens when there's too many of them?"

"Trapdoor under the fireplace," Fraser waved Chef off. "Tunnel leads out of 'ere." He paused, thinking, "Think it was built durin' World War II," he shrugged. "We can meet up at the family cemetery if we ge' separated."

"Family cemetery," Corrow couldn't help but ask, tying an axe above the front door.

"Ancestral home, bitch," Fraser gestured around himself.

Chef sighed, putting a plank of wood atop nicely placed shotgun pellets. "Don't stand here," he bawled, pointing to the doorway he put the pellets under.

"Yes, ma," Fraser joked. Of course, he knew the severity of what was going to happen in, what? A few hours? But the elder man felt it was his job to lighten the mood.

"How many nails do we have left?" Corrow asked, hammering in a board in front of a window.

"Enough. Why?" Hatchet asked.

"We could have nails and glass rain down on them from there," he pointed to a chandelier, "by flicking a light switch."

Chef nodded while Fraser snickered. "Do it."

"Oh man, if ma and da could see me now."

* * *

Detective Corrows's heart was pounding in his ears. Twilight had fallen, and according to Chef, it was likely during that time the Observer was going to make his stand.

Caught in his thoughts, he turned his revolver over in his hands. So many people were going to die tonight. Maybe himself, too.

What would happen tonight? He hadn't given that simple question much mind until now. How would these things go? Who would they tell about the island coordinates? How would they tell them? Corrow didn't have a return flight to America, and Chef definitely wasn't using credit cards, all things considered.

There were so many things he didn't think about if he got away from this battle alive. For one, if he came out at the end alive, he was so fired once he came home, and that suited him fine. This was the biggest case of his life!

Clifford was gonna get the death penalty, or be shanked by some prisoner, no doubt about it.

His heart came to a sudden lurch.

He hadn't completely grasped the idea of being this close to stopping Clifford. All he had to do was survive a little bit longer, then it's a straight shot to ending...whatever you'd call this.

"They're here," Chef murmured, voice reverberating in every part of Arkwright. His announcement earned attention from both Corrow and Fraser.

Fraser moved his shotgun off his lap, butt dragging against the wooden planks. "How many are there?" He quizzed, Scottish accent dripping.

Hatchet moved to squeeze the curtain shut. "Eight." He moved away from the window, careful to step over the shotgun shell booby trap set in the doorway. "Spread out, they'll be circling around to corner us."

"That's not a good idea," Corrow was about to say, but bit his tongue. No time to argue now.

A stony expression crossed Fraser's face. He didn't want to kill anyone, believe it or not, but he didn't want anyone hurting his friend. Fraser still tried to think of it as hunting, he was good at that. It did nothing to quell his fears, though. He was about to kill some people. Real, living people.

No time for remorse. These people will shoot on sight, it was their job. They were going to need to die.

Hands curled protectively around his weapon, Fraser just managed a, "Stay alive, laddie," to Corrow, before he escaped down one of the house's many hallways.

This situation was fucked.

What kind of world did these things to people? Corrow took a step toward the curtain, taking care to not move it. They'd see it for sure, and then he'd have a bullet lodged in his temple.

Eight men came over the curvature of the very same hill the detective had come over hours ago. Rifles, all of the same type, lay across their arms. Each step they took held deliberations.

These people were trained, Corrow mused. He scanned the eight men stepping closer and closer to the Arkwright, only then noticing the Observer wasn't among them. Unless he was the man hiding his face underneath a balaclava.

His eyes drifted to the center of the group, to a man dressed in a bulletproof vest. He had light facial hair, a goatee, fixed upon his chiseled face. Dirty-blond hair slightly ruffled in each step he took, boots digging into the ground. It wasn't his position in the group that caught Corrow's eye. No, it was his mesmerizing blue eyes. Even from this distance, he could make out the brightness.

The man made a gesture with his hand, pointing off to the left, then right. The others immediately obeyed the apparent command, confirming Corrow's suspicions this man was the leader, and the group split to three.

"Shit," Corrow cursed, following the blue-eyed man and an average looking man with a buzz cut approach the front, guns pointed.

Without a second thought, Corrow hurried off to the living room and cocked his revolver, back slammed against the nearest wall.

"Kick it in," one voice came from the other side of the door. The detective winced, peeking out from his position.

A short pause came first, then the door flew open, courtesy of Buzz Cut, as Corrow subconsciously dubbed. Splinters of wood shot off in different directions, the door flying hard into the stone wall.

Before Buzz Cut could begin to move through the front door's arch, satisfied smirk and all, however, the entanglements tying a certain fire axe above the doorway came loose and swung down hard.

Buzz Cut stopped mid-step, orbs in his head growing wide in realization. The man behind took quick cover behind a wall, paying his ally no mind even as the axe clanked to the ground. Holding his stomach, Buzz Cut made to fire off at least one shot and went still. Instead, he fell forward on his wound, his weapon clattering, and body unnaturally still.

"Wasn't expecting that," the blue-eyed man exclaimed in a tone Corrow couldn't quite decipher.

The detective flung himself from the wall and took two shots towards in the doorway's direction. Racing across the room, he scooped up the rifle Buzz Cut dropped. Coming out a doorway, he skidded to a stop in front of Hatchet.

"What're you doin' here?" Hatchet asked, his eyes as wide as saucers. "I almost shot you!"

Corrow dropped his own eyes to his chest and found a rifle pointed at him. "Spreading out wasn't a good idea," he whisper-yelled before he could stop himself.

Chef shook his head and opened his mouth to say something, and stopped, his stare stuck on something beyond Corrow's shoulder. The detective began turning around, catching a glimpse of a silver watch in the sunlight, before he was pulled under the kitchen's arch, just as a spray of gunfire blasted pieces of glass off a nearby table.

"Son of a bitch!" Corrow shouted amidst the gunfire, holding his rifle close to his chest. In his panic, he didn't notice Chef's shaking, the man frozen to his spot. Had he noticed, he would've realized this would be the first time he fired a gun at another human being since his time in war.

Silver Watch took slow steps closer to the arch, rifle pointed with a sure and steady hand. Unlike Buzz Cut, his face remained neutral. For him, this was just part of the job.

Detective Corrow maneuvered himself as best he could in the limited space he had, aiming his gun towards the place Silver Watch would come into focus. He didn't expect the man to grab the barrel of his gun and force it down to the ground.

Coming around from the other side, Silver Watch tossed Corrow's rifle to the ground, weapon directed at him.

"Wait," the detective tried, his tone weak, and although Silver Watch hesitated, the creaking of floorboards earned his divided attention instead. Corrow jumped in his skin as a blast blew Silver Watch away.

"Welcome to Scotland," a curt distinctive Scottish accent sounded, and Corrow felt Chef's tension ease away beside him.

Fraser appeared seconds later, shotgun in grasp. "Whit are you twa doin' here?" He asked, looking from Chef to Corrow. "Ah thought we were spreadin' oot?"

"We were," Hatchet replied, growling to Corrow. "Boy came-"

"Wheesht," Fraser suddenly snapped, and Chef instantly went quiet. The house was silent, excusing the gurgling from Silver Watch, who remained a crumple on the floor.

Corrow started to ask what was wrong when it dawned upon him. It was way too quiet for people who were trying to break into the house. Those thoughts went blank at the sight of a figure outside a window, and instincts took over.

"Get down!" He shouted, looping one arm around Chef and dragging him to the ground, Fraser following seconds later as a stream of shots clipped the stone.

"Damn! We need to get out of this room," Hatchet roared, returning fire the best he could at the window. "Go!"

They didn't need to be told twice, duo standing up and racing to the next room over. By time they turned around to see a lack of gunfire, Chef was gone. Rather than see, they heard the sound of a man thrusting his weapon up against a boarded window.

Fury exploded within Corrow's innards. How dare they do this to them? Killing these kids on television, so when you try to stop them, you're attacked like you're the bad guy. What right did they have?

Just as Windows clambered through broken glass, and against his better judgment, Corrow sprinted at his attacker. The action turned Windows's head in his direction, in time for Corrow to slam his fist into his face, and the blow sent the man staggering.

Despite his daze, Windows lifted his firearm at Corrow. The action became pointless when the detective stamped down his foot and brought his hand in a bang against his throat, crushing Windows's windpipe.

Groaning in pain, the man went silent at last, Corrow having punched him in the face, feeling the cartilage in his nose break under the thwack. He fell back, knocked out cold.

Corrow's stomach turned at an aroma of sweat and a thin layer of smoke. "Ye broke his coupon," Fraser couldn't help smirk, putting a hand on Corrow's shoulder. In spite of the circumstances, Corrow let out a small laugh.

"Come on, let's go," the Scotsman continued, serious, leading the detective into an empty dining room adjoining to the kitchen.

"What do we do?" Corrow whispered.

"Keep moving yer arse," Fraser retorted.

A string of shots thundered from the tip of the tube, and Fraser did a half-circle just in time to watch a lead bullet collide with his tibia would be. They were two men, this time. One with a four-leaf clover keychain on his piece. His partner, though, couldn't seem to hold his gun still, instead twitching with nerves.

It became quickly apparent Twitch was the one who took the shot.

"Ye cunt!" Fraser shouted, falling to his knees.

Ireland and Twitch moved their guns to Corrow, who'd begun running to the other end of the room, hand outstretched towards a light switch, flicking it downward on a movement he'd perfected in his childhood.

Just as they'd planned, the place where bulbs used to be shattered in an explosion of nails and gunpowder, sending both Twitch and Ireland to the floor in a bloody heap, life fizzling out of them by the second.

Fraser rolled out of his spot underneath the dining table, sight sweeping past the bodies of the people Corrow subconsciously named Twitch and Ireland. Using his shotgun to help himself to his feet, he spoke, "Ye good?" He queried, voice hoarse.

Corrow nodded at his stance from the light switch, making sure to keep his ears open to if the others would follow the source of the explosion. "You stay here," he told the Scotsman, eyeing his injured leg, "Fix yourself up. Be careful, get under the table."

Fraser made a show of rolling his eyes but complied nonetheless.

More gunfire went off, helping to cover their conversation. Corrow hurried out of the dining room and down the hallway.

* * *

Another rifle shot. This time digging into the thick table Chef sat behind, splinters flying out under every shot taken. How were they still going?

Just as quickly as the thought crossed, the barrage of bullets ended. Chef leaped up with a spray of his own, landing one on the man with a scar's shoulder.

Balaclava man, however, ducked his head back under a stone wall separating them.

Dust touched Chef's nostrils, falling back under his cover. Just a few more steps, just another step-

Boom!

The man with a balaclava was thrown against the wall, legs bent the wrong way.

"Bastard!" Scar faced man howled. "You killed my friend!"

The man surged forward, kicking the table, and knocking Chef over in one swift movement.

"He was goin' to kill me!" Chef snapped back, stomping his foot back at the man's ankle.

The man grunted, putting his hand against the table to support his weight.

"Killed him like he was nothing!" The man shouted, conveniently ignoring the last words Hatchet spoke.

The man struck Chef's chest with his foot, shoving him down.

"Hey, Scarface!" The man whipped around at the new voice. The distraction gave pause to his actions and allowed Chef to free himself.

"Bitch!" Scarface seethed, taking a half step forward, half a turn to the side.

Lunging for his weapon, Hatchet rolled away and fired away, shredding through the man's torso until his magazine emptied.

His eyes burned from sweat, gunpowder, and death, even after the man fell back, dead.

Pause took the scene. Six dead bodies lay somewhere, unmoving, in Arkwright's walls. People were dead, adding further numbers to the total victims of the Total Drama Murders, as most media are calling it.

Who did these things to people? These kids? Forcing them to vote for each other until they die, until only one of them is left. Chef swallowed the bile in his throat.

Clifford killed his best friend. This was retaliation.

"Are you hurt?" Corrow dropped to his knees beside the ex-cook. The simple action helped the man in question realize he hadn't stopped staring at Scarface's corpse, bone fragments protruding from his many bullet wounds.

Hatchet nodded slowly. "How many are left?"

"Just one," Corrow paused, "Outside."

Chef breathed a sigh and began to stand up, ignoring the throbbing in his shoulder. "Where's Thomas?"

"Right here," Fraser appeared in the doorway, a tourniquet tied tightly around leg. His shotgun remained by his side. "Where's this last wee cunt?"

Corrow started to speak but was aggressively interrupted by something outside. Fraser's brow rose in confusion, while Chef's mouth was left agape.

 _"Hurrah, hurrah, hurrah!"_

Exchanging glances, the trio hurried the best they could to the nearest window for the source of the noise.

 _"Sound the news from the din of battle booming,_

 _"Tell the people far and wide that better times are coming!"_

"What-"

"The fuck?"

Emerging over the top of the hill some hundred or so feet away was an RG-31 Mk3A with large speakers attached to the side, blaring music obnoxiously loud.

"I guess that's him," Corrow took a step back in disbelief, both at what he knew they had to face against, and the loud entrance he made for himself.

"Ye mean Ah got my leg shot up for hee haw?"

 _"There are voices of hope that are borne on the air,_

 _"And our land will be freed from its clouds of despair-"_

"What's the plan here?" Corrow looked to Chef for guidance. The truck came to a stop outside.

 _"For brave men and true men to battle have gone,_

 _"And good times, good times are now coming on!"_

The doors opened and six men stepped out, Corrow's attention landing on only one of them. He was wearing a black overcoat over some fancy militia vest, one that allowed him two handguns strapped to his chest, both laying opposite directions. Further down was two pistol magazines ready to be taken out and loaded in.

He was the Observer.

Hatchet let out a growl and hit out his window with the butt of his rifle, and began to open fire at the new team of mercenaries.

 _"Hurrah, hurrah, hurrah!"_

The Observer was the first to jump for cover, lead raining upon two of his men, falling to the dirt ground with a thud.

Scowling, the man in the gunner's seat returned fire.

 _"Sound the news from the din of battle booming,_

 _"Tell the people far and wide that better times are coming!"_

"Run!" Hatchet bellowed, dragging Fraser along with him as bullets pierced the air, flying through boarded windows and soft stone.

Wheels moving once more, the RG-31 circled the Arkwright with continuous firepower.

"Great plan, min!" Fraser shouted, back hugging the stone arch. Chef didn't respond. "We can't take these pieces of shite!"

"You're giving up?" Corrow questioned with outrage.

"I didnae say tha'!" Fraser countered. "I'm sayin-"

The Scotsman stopped mid-sentence as a grenade came flying through one of the many broken windows.

With a yell, Corrow snagged Fraser and ran in a senseless direction, Chef trailing behind.

 _"Generals Lyon and Baker and Ellsworth now are gone,_

 _"But we still have some brave men to lead the soldiers on-"_

"Why don't you get out of here detective? I have no quarrel with you!" Someone shouted, probably the Observer.

Corrow bit back his reply.

 _"The noise of battle will soon have died away,_

 _"And the darkness now upon us will be turn'd to happy day!"_

"No?" The Observer tossed another grenade, blowing up a chunk of the house. "So be it, then."

"What do we do?" Corrow asked his two allies, rubbing soot from his face. Fear was overtaking his primary emotion.

"We can leave through the fireplace. Trapdoor, 'member?" Fraser said quickly, sweating badly.

 _"Hurrah, hurrah, hurrah!"_

"We can set off the propane tanks," Chef whispered, rifle rattling to the floor.

"Nae bother," Fraser cut off his thought process. "At this rate, the wallaper'll set it off on his own."

 _"Sound the news from the din of battle booming,_

 _"Tell the people far and wide that better times are coming!"_

Yet another grenade came through, but the trio was already on the move. Flames exploded through the broken window, setting another room on aflame.

The Observer took a step away from the window, heat too strong to keep near. The sky had gone dark now, leaving the only light source as that from the burning building.

"There!" The blue-eyed man pointed to shapes through one of the window gaps.

 _"Better times are coming!"_

Fraser lifted the secret hatch under the fireplace, allowing Chef to descend first. He nodded to Corrow, smiling slightly, and the detective started to climb down.

Glass breaking under a boot earned Fraser's attention. Swinging around, he took a shot at the man Corrow knocked unconscious. Landing back on the ground, Fraser chanced a glance out the window, right on time to see the Observer underhand a grenade right in.

Fraser made quick work to the hatch as the grenade fell not far off a propane tank.

But he wasn't quick enough.

An absolutely enormous explosion tore apart Arkwright from the inside. The powerful blast flinging Fraser's body like a ragdoll into and along the stone chimney, shattering each and every bone in his body.

The force sent Corrow stumbling down the secret stairs, and by the time he hit the bottom, he knew no more.

* * *

Aleksandr Grinik groaned in pain. What the hell was that, he wondered, a constant ringing in his ears. He examined his surroundings, finding the house he and his team were invading was a fireball. Speaking of…His gaze drifted, briefly touching the corpses within the explosives proximity.

Snarling, he pulled a pistol out of its strap, slamming the magazine into place. Couldn't be too sure now, could you?

The blue-eyed man hissed from where the explosion launched him over. He touched his ear, blood dribbling low. "I can't hear anything," he whispered, grasping at his ears desperately. "Wait…"

"Here!" Grinik shouted over the rumble of flames and debris, lobbing his one remaining ally a pistol.

"What?" The man asked, turning his head so that Grinik was facing his non-bleeding ear.

Grinik's eyes narrowed. "We're leaving. There's a cemetery further down. If Chef or Corrow are alive, that's where they'll be."

The man's dazzling blue eyes grew. "Why would they be there? I saw them in the house!" He shouted, wincing when he couldn't hear his voice in his right ear and gestured wildly at what was left of Arkwright. He took a step closer to Grinik and grimaced. "What happened to your face?"

Grinik rose an eyebrow and his free hand instinctively went to the right side of his face and found what felt like shards of glass and debris impaled in his face. He shook his head, muttering, "I'll deal with that later." More loudly, "Let's go," he ordered.

Today wasn't supposed to happen this way. Today they were supposed to find Chef Hatchet and unleash rounds of bullets into his chest. Or something on the classy side, Grinik frowned. Look at how all that went. His team dead and there was a chance Chef and Corrow was still alive.

The man with blue eyes cocked the pistol Grinik graciously donated to him. "And if they aren't there?"

"Then they died in the explosion," the Observer returned, loading his own handgun.

* * *

Detective Corrow woke with a start, and the first sense that came back was the amount of pain plaguing his sore body. Next was smell; the smell of smoke and fire running and desperate to escape the secret tunnel beneath Arkwright. Third to return was the taste of dirt and blood stuck at the back of his throat.

It was when sight came back, however, when Corrow realized Chef had left him behind. How long had it been? A few minutes, perhaps? Arkwright was still in flames, after all.

The detective scrambled to his feet, intuitively reaching for the holster he forgot wasn't there. Chef took his weapon, too? He cursed.

Chef, you stubborn asshole. After all this and you still don't trust him?

Coughing when he inhaled smoke throughout his lungs, Corrow ran as best he could to the exit of the tunnel. Fraser told them to head to his family cemetery if they were to get separated, Corrow recalled.

Then again, Chef trusted Fraser, not him. And now, Fraser's corse lay within Arkwright, burned and broken. Corrow loured. He liked Fraser.

Reaching the exit, he shoved hard at the wooden disguised door and sprinted hard in the cemetery's direction. If the Observer was still alive, he might make his way over, himself.

No. No, that couldn't happen. He needs to live just as much as anyone. He won't let the Observer or his lackeys kill-

A short spritz of pellets knocked up dirt particles and Corrow skid to a stop. From here he could feel the presence of two men, but only one of them came to view.

Ten feet away stood the Observer and looking worse than he'd ever seen him. Light from the fire illuminated glass shards sticking out of his face and Corrow internally winced, straining to show his opponent the least amount of emotion he could.

"Detective Corrow. You're still alive," it came out as more of a statement than an observation. "If you just stopped investigating we wouldn't be in this mess, you know," the Observer rubbed his eyes.

The sound of dirt crunching under boots makes Corrow tense back up. Ever so slowly, he watched a second man emerge from the shadows, studying the blue eyes that appeared before the figure did.

"Now," the Observer continued, drawing Corrow's attention. "I really need to be finding Hatchet. So, maybe I'll be seeing you around?" He looked to the other man. "Or maybe not."

And then Grinik stalked off.

The blue-eyed man, though, didn't.

Acting purely on instincts alone, Corrow pounced onto the man, driving his elbow into his gut.

Smothering his moan, the man pushed his gun hand in a circular motion towards Corrow's head.

Jabbing out like a shooting star, Corrow's fist met the man's neck, and his grasp on the gun weakened.

The blue-eyed man, nevertheless, stood standing, and struck his leg out like a cannon, clipping the detective's leg, and sending him sprawling to the earth.

His blue eyes glared Corrow into the dirt. This was what he got for trying to play hero. He lifted the gun…

And in retaliation, got a fierce kick to the knee.

The man let out a yell of pain, but the time he pointed the gun back down, Corrow had looped his leg with his and pulled.

Crashing beside him, Corrow wasted no time going for the pistol.

"No!" The man gnashed his teeth in rage. How could he have been so stupid? He, too, reached forward as far as he could.

One of the two found the gun and fired a single shot through the night air. The body fell with a bullet wound through the eye.

* * *

Grinik smirked as a gunshot echoed. So his comrade killed the bastard? Good. He resumed his trek towards the family cemetery front gate.

Maybe this hunt may have been worth his while after all. Usually, his targets ran, never fought back, so this was near new. Despite his frustrations, he felt excited at the prospect of someone refusing to go down.

Perhaps that's why Clifford proposed the idea of sticking speakers to an RG-31. He'll have to thank him for that, it led to more fun.

The downside of the contract? Dealing with Corrow. He was an annoying piece of the puzzle dumb enough to lead him to Hatchet. But, that's why he left him alive; he didn't care much for him.

It's also why he left the blue-eyed man with him. No doubt he hated the detective for blowing his eardrum.

Grinik rolled his eyes, putting the fact he was also responsible for that explosion out of his mind.

Reaching the cemetery gate, he pushed it open regardless of the hinges squeaking in protest. Without cease, he marched in with lethal confidence.

"Chef Hatchet?" Grinik shouted to the night sky air. "Why don't you come out?"

How could the Observer be beaten? This was his natural environment. On the hunt in search of prey.

The Observer went down a row of gravestones, surveying the area from left to right. His calm footsteps crush the dirt beneath his every step.

"You're nearby," he said, tap, tap, tapping at his gun.

Chef remained still, not dating to either respond or move. He wasn't going to die like this. Not when he's so close to surviving this attack.

"I know you're here," the Observer whispered loudly. He stopped and turned around. He must've reached the end of the row. And that meant he was coming closer. Narrowing down on Chef's position.

How was he going to escape this? He had no weapons, no means to defend himself...

The knife, Hatchet abruptly remembered.

The ex-cook darted his hand into his pocket, slipping his grip around the hunting knife he'd forgotten about. So stupid, stupid! He mentally berated himself for forgetting.

"Seriously, just come out! We'll make this quick, I promise," the Observer gave an exasperated heave, apparently not at all worried about Chef jumping out and attacking. Or at least, not worrying about Chef beating him in combat.

"It's nothing personal, you know," Grinik slipped in another row. "A contract is a contract."

He was getting testy, Chef realized. The hiding was getting on his nerves. Not only that, he was getting closer. He grit his teeth in preparation.

Grinik's footsteps were getting louder and Hatchet had to bite down the gasp when they reached just the other side of his cover.

"This hiding is…" he trailed off. "Is that- oh, there you are!"

And there was his cue.

The ex-cook propelled his body in a circular motion, knife raised high.

Grinik dodged, the sudden movement making him unable to lift his gun arm.

Chef missed the blade, although his momentum barreled into his enemy, shouldering him.

The Observer regained his balance in time to catch Hatchet's punch, returning a neat left hook to the jaw.

He stumbled back, bleeding from the nose.

"I thought you were a veteran, Hatchet," Grinik smiled crazily. "I guess you're all talk, after all." He hoisted his pistol up.

Chef ducked the shot and slammed his full weight to the Observer, hurling the both of them to the floor.

Unwillingly, the pistol fell to the side and Chef took the advantage to ground in the pieces of debris sticking from the Observer's face.

Grinik howled in agony. He sprawled his hand out in search of something, anything that could help him. When he did, he swung as hard as he could at Chef's head, rock breaking on impact.

Ripples of pain came to Chef like a wave. Unable to regain his advantage in time, Grinik shoved him off and stood up.

The ex-cook groaned, struggling to his feet, and Grinik kicked him back, bottoming his face in the dirt.

Swiping the hunting knife from Hatchet's weakened grip, the Observer dragged him towards one of the graves, and before the man could regain his awareness, the Observer struck him through the collar bone and pinned him to the grave.

That brought him out of his stupor; he screamed.

So then...this is how it ends. The realization hit him hard. That there was nothing left he could do. His life, just like his best friend, was over.

"Aren't you going to kill me now?" He asked, panting.

"That's the job," Grinik answered, picking up his dropped pistol.

"Why?" Chef spat out through blood. "Why do this?"

The Observer shrugged. "It's a job. It's nothing personal."

"Sure seems like it."

The Observer shrugged again, pulling a small splinter out his face. "Lane doesn't want you leaking the island's location. Other than that, nothing."

The gate closed and Grinik glanced back, just managing to see his ally's bulletproof vest in the dim light.

"That's it?" Chef interrogated. "Does your employer have no regard for life?"

"Probably not," the Observer admitted. "But as I said, a contract is a contract."

Chef exhaled. So then, this really was the end.

"Now then, how would you like to die?"

"What?"

"That's what I always ask people before I kill them. One last request in the form of how you want to die."

"And," Hatchet swallowed back acidity in his mouth, "how do most people choose?"

"Screaming and crying, most of the time. Then a headshot," the Observer smiled at what seemed like fond memories. "You're stalling."

Chef didn't answer.

"Fine. If you don't answer, I'll ask my associate what he thinks," he turned his body at the other man, who had just come to stop behind him. "What did you say your name was-?"

Turning his notice elsewhere, he quickly became aware that it wasn't a pair of two bright blue eyes staring back at him.

Rather, he found John Corrow looking back at him, handgun leveled at his head.

Grinik drew his piece but wasn't nearly as fast as Corrow was, the man has already fired.

The Observer felt a sharp sting, followed by a flow of warm blood. He fired back at the detective, emptying his magazine into his chest.

The idiot grazed him, Grinik leered. He clasped a hand around the left side of his neck to stop the bleeding. He could feel Chef's gaze on his back, but he ignored it.

"You really can't count on people, can you? You've gotta do everything yourself," the Observer shook his head to himself and stood over Corrow's body.

"On the bright side, that's two for one." He frowned when he saw Corrow stir. Right. Bulletproof vest. "Of course," he murmured.

He dropped the magazine and reloaded with the other, leveling it at Corrow's head.

No. No, not him, too! He tried to save him. He was wrong about him! He couldn't die, too. He could feel his adrenaline pumping in his veins and, without thinking much of consequence, ripped his hunting knife out of his collar bone.

Holding it by the blade and, thinking a lack of the things that could go wrong, let the knife fly and watched as it ripped into the Observer's neck.

A sharp pain took over Grinik's senses, and he pulled the trigger, the bullet whizzing past Corrow by a mile. His blood spilled over his hands and he went on to say something, to check if this was all part of his imagination, when the only sound that came out was a choked gasp.

He collapses with a dull thump, gagging and gasping, clutching at his throat in spite of the growing pool of crimson beneath him. This couldn't happen to him, he thought!

Chef stood up, placing a hand on where his knife wound was. He couldn't bear to look at the Observer's convulsing. Corrow, on the other hand, couldn't look away.

Only when the ex-cook sat beside him did Corrow finally look away.

"Why did you do that?" He asked, sitting up beside Hatchet. He wanted so bad to drown out the sound of the Observer's harsh breaths and garbling.

Chef, it seems, understood. "Because I was wrong. There was no reason for me to not trust you."

"So you're saying you trust me, then?" Corrow questioned.

"No, boy," Chef replied, glowering. "I'm saying I'll give ya the coordinates."

"What made you change your mind?"

"Because I haven't done anything right since Chris died, man. Not one thing." And all this helped me realize that, he kept to himself.

* * *

 **AN:** First, I'll go ahead and confirm Grinik did indeed die here. I couldn't find a way to incorporate the moment he died into the story without making come off as choppy. Speaking of, I based off a lot of this chapter on a certain movie, extra points to you if you can name that movie, and mixed with that that I suck at writing fight scenes, I feel like some of the scenes come as choppy. And lastly, the song is in the public domain.

And, you know what would be a great Christmas present? A TVTropes page, perhaps? Just kidding, but I really would appreciate that.


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